Skip to main content

Full text of "An historical sketch of bookbinding;"

See other formats


AN    HISTORICAL   SKETCH 

OF 

BOOKBINDING. 


AN    HISTORICAL    SKETCH 

OF 

BOOKBINDING 

BY 

gf  T.    PRIDEAUX 

WITH  A  CHAPTER  ON   EARLY  STAMPED  BINDINGS 
BY   E.    GORDON    DUFF. 


LONDON 

LAWRENCE  &  BULLEN 

16  HENRIETTA  STREET,  COVENT  GARDEN 
1893 


RICHARD  CLAY  AND  SONS,  LIMITED, 
LONDON  AND  BUNGAY. 


z. 


PREFACE 

THE  chier  part  of  the  present  book  was  written  as  an 
Introduction  to  the  Catalogue  of  the  Exhibition  of  Bind- 
ings, held  at  the  Burlington  Fine  Arts  Club  in  the 
Summer  of  1891. 

In  consequence  of  the  growing  interest  in  Binding  it 
has  been  thought  that  an  enlarged  reprint  of  the  Intro- 
duction might  be  useful  to  students,  since  information 
on  the  subject  is  only  to  be  found  scattered  up  and 
(S  down  expensive  illustrated  works,  most  of  which  are  no 
<£,  longer  obtainable. 

In  the  Appendix  will  be  found  a  detailed  account 
of  embroidered  covers,  metal  ornaments  and  book-edge 
decoration  which  Messrs.  Cassell  have  kindly  allowed 


SANTA  BARBARA  STATE  COLLEOE  Lii 


vi  PREFACE. 

me  to  reprint  from  their  Magazine  of  Art,  as  well  as 
such  early  English  documents  relating  to  the  craft 
as  I  have  been  able  to  find. 

I  hope  it  will  be  borne  in  mind  that  this  does  not  pretend 
to  be  an  exhaustive  historical  treatise,  but  is  intended 
solely  to  help  those  interested  in  Binding  to  take 
the  first  steps  towards  its  study.  Having  always  in 
view  this  one  object  I  have  added  a  chronological 
table  of  the  French  and  English  sovereigns,  the  ex- 
planation of  a  few  technical  terms,  and  a  Bibliography 
of  works  relating  to  the  subject. 

The  "  end-paper "  used  for  the  present  volume  is  a 
reproduction  of  one  made  at  Nuremberg  in  the 
eighteenth  century. 

I  am  glad  to  take  this  opportunity  of  acknowledg- 
ing the  constant  kindness  of  Mr.  W.  Y.  Fletcher, 
who  has  at  all  times  given  me  every  facility  for  the 
examination  of  Bindings  at  the  British  Museum. 

S.  T.  PRIDEAUX. 


CONTENTS. 

BINDING  OF  ST.  CUTHBERT'S  GOSPEL Frontispiece 

PAGE 

1.  HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING i 

2.  TABLE  OF  CONTEMPORANEOUS  SOVEREIGNS  IN  FRANCE 

AND  ENGLAND 138 

3.  TECHNICAL  TERMS  IN  ORDINARY  USE 139 

4.  EMBROIDERED  BOOK-COVERS 140 

5.  THE  USE  OF  METAL  IN  BOUND  BOOKS 169 

6.  BOOK-EDGE  DECORATION ,   .  200 

7.  EARLY  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  CRAFT 211 

8.  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  WORKS  RELATING  TO  BINDING    ...  251 
INDEX 295 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH 
OF   BOOKBINDING. 


THE  Art  of  Bookbinding  has  existed  from  the  time  Earliest 

bookbinding 

when  books  were  first  made,  but  in  the  earliest  times 
was  little  more  than  a  special  department  of  gold- 
smiths' work.  Valuable  books,  and  the  majority  of 
books  were  then  valuable,  were  covered  with  gold  or 
silver  and  ornamented  with  ivory  and  jewels.  But  since 
some  manuscripts  could  not  have  been  of  such  notable 
value,  or  their  owners  rich  enough  to  ornament  them  in 
so  costly  a  manner,  a  humbler  style  of  binding  grew  up, 
which,  employing  leather  as  a  suitable  and  inexpensive 
material,  laid  the  foundation  of  bookbinding  proper  as 
we  now  understand  it. 

Few  jewelled  bindings  have  come  down  to  our  time,  jewelled 

bindings. 

for  they  were  too  valuable  to  escape  the  cupidity  of  rulers 


2          HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

and  the  fury  of  reformers.  In  England,  the  spoliation  of 
the  monasteries  under  Henry  VIII.,  and  the  wholesale 
destruction  under  Edward  VI.  of  all  vestiges  of  the  old 
learning,  wrought  irremediable  havoc  amongst  the  fine 
libraries,  and  such  rich  bindings  as  might  have  till  then 
escaped  were  swept  away  under  the  act  "  to  strip  off  and 
pay  into  the  king's  treasury  all  gold  and  silver  found  on 
Popish  books  of  devotion."  Abroad  this  destruction 
was  not  quite  so  wholesale ;  in  all  the  more  important 
libraries  and  in  a  few  private  collections  examples  are  to 
be  found.  Much  of  the  ornamentation  was  formed  of 
enamel,  and  the  centre  was  frequently  an  ivory  plaque, 
while  the  corners  were  studded  with  crystals  or  precious 
stones.  In  very  few  cases,  however,  were  these  ivories 
carved  for  the  bindings  on  which  they  are  found,  but 
were  used  like  the  precious  stones  as  being  in  themselves 
very  beautiful  and  suitable  for  the  purpose  of  ornamenta- 
tion. In  many  cases,  too,  we  find  that  the  MS.  on  which 
the  binding  is  now  placed  is  not  the  one  for  which  it  was 
originally  made ;  so  that  although  a  fair  number  of  these 
early  bindings  are  in  existence,  there  are  not  many  which 
have  come  down  to  our  times  in  an  unaltered  condition. 
Perhaps  almost  the  finest  examples  in  England  of  the 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.  3 

work  of  two  different  periods  are  the  covers  of  the  MS.  Ashbumham 

Gospels. 

of  the  Four  Gospels,  which  belonged  from  time  imme- 
morial to  the  Abbey  of  Noble  Canonesses  at  Lindau  on 
the  Lake  of  Constance.  In  1803  the  convent  was  dis- 
solved, and  the  MS.  shortly  afterwards  sold,  finding  its 
way  into  the  collection  of  the  Earl  of  Ashburnham. 
The  lower  cover  is  the  earlier,  being  of  the  8th  century. 
Though  strongly  Celtic  in  design  it  was  made  in  South 
Germany.  In  the  centre  is  a  cross  patee  with  four 
figures  representing  the  Saviour,  the  spaces  between  the 
arms  of  the  cross  containing  figures  of  animals.  The 
corners  which  have  lost  their  original  ornaments  are  filled 
with  figures  of  the  four  evangelists.  The  material  is 
gold  or  silver  gilt  ornamented  with  jewels.  The  upper 
cover  was  made  about  896  in  South  Germany.  In 
the  centre  is  a  crucifixion ;  in  the  upper  divisions  made 
by  the  cross  two  angels,  in  the  lower,  figures  of  the 
Virgin  and  St.  John,  St.  Mary  Magdalene,  and  Mary  the 
wife  of  Cleopas.  The  whole  is  surrounded  by  a  border 
profusely  decorated  with  jewels,  which  are  also  used  in 
profusion  over  the  whole  surface  and  edges. 

From  a  very  early  time  deer-skin  and  cheveril  were 
used  in  the  monasteries   both   for   binding   the   books 


4  HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

themselves  and  for  making  cases  for  the  costlier  bindings. 
These  cases  were  soon  discarded  and  are  rarely  to  be 
found,  though  some  early  Irish  "polaires"  are  still  ex- 
tant, as  for  instance  the  beautiful  specimen  in  the  library 
of  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  which  formed  the  cover 
of  The  Book  of  Armagh. 
St.  Cuth-  Of  actual  leather  bindings,  the  most  interesting  and 

bert's  Gospel. 

noticeable  is  that  on  the  little  volume  containing  the 
Gospel  of  St.  John,  taken  from  the  tomb  of  St.  Cuthbert, 
which  after  many  wanderings  is  now  in  the  library 
at  Stonyhurst.  The  boards  of  thin  wood  are  covered 
with  red  leather,  and  in  the  centre  of  the  obverse  cover 
is  a  raised  ornament  of  Celtic  design  ;  above  and  below 
are  small  oblong  panels  filled  with  interlaced  work 
executed  with  a  style  and  coloured  with  yellow  paint. 
The  reverse  cover  is  worked  with  a  geometrical  design 
picked  out  in  yellow.  As  to  the  date  of  this  binding 
there  are  different  opinions,  some  assigning  it  to  as  early 
as  the  loth  century,  others  to  the  i2th,  while  a  mis- 
guided few  have  gone  so  far  as  to  call  it  Elizabethan. 
The  style  of  the  binding  undoubtedly  points  to  the 
earliest  date,  and  its  excellent  preservation  and  freshness 
are  no  disproof  of  its  antiquity,  since  such  volumes  were 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.  5 

usually  carried  in  a  decorated  metal  or  leather  case. 
The  vellum  flyleaves  of  the  book,  however,  are  of  MS, 
much  later  than  the  loth  century,  and  though  these  may 
very  well  have  been  added  later  to  prevent  the  first 
and  last  leaf  of  the  Gospel  from  being  rubbed,  they 
have  caused  some  doubts  as  to  the  very  early  date 
of  the  binding.  We  may  safely  conclude  that  if  the 
book  was  bound  as  late  as  the  i2th  or  i3th  century 
the  binding  upon  it  was  copied  from  an  earlier  one. 

By  the   1 2th  century  England  was  at  the  head  of  all  English 

XII.  Cent. 

foreign  nations  as  regards  binding,  and,  thanks  to  the  Bindings, 
researches  of  Mr.  Weale,  can  fully  substantiate  its  claim 
to  that  position.  London,  Winchester,  Durham,  and  a 
few  other  important  towns  and  monasteries  had  each 
their  schools  of  binding,  and  from  the  few  examples 
which  have  been  preserved  we  can  judge  of  the  excellence 
of  the  work.  The  covers  of  the  books  were  tooled  with 
numbers  of  small  dies,  and  the  beauty  of  the  binding 
depended  as  much  upon  the  individual  delicacy  and 
beauty  of  the  stamps  as  upon  their  arrangement,  which, 
though  infinitely  varied,  was  very  formal. 

Durham   was   especially  noteworthy   for  its   style    of 
binding,  and  there  are  still  preserved  in  its  Cathedral 


6  HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

library  a  series  of  books  bound  for  Bishop  Pudsey 
towards  the  end  of  the  i2th  century,  perhaps  the  finest 
monuments  of  this  class  of  work  in  existence.  The  dies 
are  very  various,  and  represent  men,  seated  and  on  horse- 
back, fabulous  animals  of  various  descriptions,  and  many 
formal  designs.  Much  of  the  ornamentation  is  formed 
of  fine  interlaced  chain  work,  such  as  is  generally 
associated  with  Venetian  binding,  while  many  of  the 
dies  bear  the  greatest  resemblance  to  those  used  in 
Strasburg  in  the  i$th  century. 
Early  win-  The  early  Winchester  work,  of  which  the  finest 

Chester 

bindings.  specimen  is  the  cover  of  the  "  Winchester  Domesday 
Book,"  in  the  library  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  though 
not  so  elaborate  as  that  of  Durham,  and  without  the 
interlacing  pattern,  has  dies  of  equally  beautiful  execution. 
In  all  these  early  bindings  the  main  design  of  the  side  is 
a  parallelogram  formed  by  lines  of  dies,  but  the  centre 
is  filled  up  with  circles  and  portions  of  circles,  a  style 
peculiar  to  England.  This  use  of  a  circular  ornament 
was  so  common,  that  some  of  the  dies  were  cut  wider  at 
the  top  than  the  bottom,  like  the  stones  in  the  arch  of  a 
bridge,  so  that  when  fitted  side  by  side  they  would  form 
circles  or  parts  of  circles  ;  and  in  the  same  way  many  of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.  7 

the  oblong  dies  were  curved.  The  next  two  centuries 
do  not  seem  to  have  produced  much  work  of  importance ; 
and  the  lavish  use  of  dies  seems  to  have  decreased. 
There  is,  however,  little  material  of  this  period  left  from 
which  we  can  judge,  but  from  such  of  the  account  books 
and  fabric  rolls  as  have  been  preserved  we  can  see  that 
bookbinding  was  largely  practised,  and  even  the  names 
of  a  number  of  individual  binders  are  known. 

The  most  important  foreign  bindings  of  the  time  were 
produced  in  the  Low  Countries  and  in  France ; 
Germany  producing  little  that  is  noteworthy,  with  the 
exception  of  some  fine  hand-worked  leather  bindings  of 
figure  subjects  or  floral  patterns.  In  these  the  back- 
ground is  cut  away  to  a  slight  depth  and  then  diapered 
over  with  a  punch,  producing  a  very  rich  effect.  The 
Netherlandish  binders  seem  to  have  taken  the  lead,  and 
beside  doing  beautiful  work,  introduced  many  improve- 
ments in  the  art. 

The  invention  of  printing  in  1454,  forms  naturally  an  invention  of 

Printing. 

important  epoch  in  the  history  of  bookbinding.  When 
books  began  to  be  issued  in  such  great  numbers  it  was 
necessary  that  the  bindings  also  should  be  produced 
more  rapidly,  and  though  they  necessarily  lost  much  of 


8  HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

their  individuality,  they  retained  in  the  various  countries 
a  national  distinctive  style.  Bindings  after  this  period 
fall  into  two  distinct  divisions,  trade  bindings  and  private 
bindings.  It  was  the  custom  of  the  stationer  to  issue  his 
books  ready  bound,  having  himself  obtained  them  from 
the  printer  in  sheets.  In  the  earliest  times,  the  printer  was 
very  often  a  stationer  as  well,  and  in  the  latter  capacity 
bound  his  own  books,  but  the  two  trades  rapidly  became 
distinct,  the  binding  being  done  entirely  by  the  sta- 
tioners. The  rich  private  collectors  continued  to  have 
their  books  bound  in  a  more  sumptuous  manner,  using 
as  a  rule  damask  and  velvet  rather  than  leather.  Many 
binders  stamped  their  names  upon  their  bindings  either 
in  full  or  concealed  in  a  rebus,  others  stamped  their 
initials  and  trade  mark ;  one  at  least  went  so  far  as  to 
ornament  his  books  with  his  own  portrait.  Amongst  the 
German  more  important  binders  of  Germany  at  this  period  we 

XV.  Cent. 

bindings.  may  mention  especially  John  Richenbach,  of  Geislingen. 
His  bindings,  as  a  rule  of  pigskin,  bear  full  inscriptions 
stamped  upon  the  sides  giving  not  only  his  own  name  as 
binder,  and  the  date  of  the  binding,  but  often  the  name 
of  the  person  for  whom  the  book  was  bound.  These 
bindings  are  dated  from  1467  onwards.  Johannes 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.  9 

Fogel,  who  used  some  very  delicate  stamps,  amongst 
them  a  curious,  half-length  figure  playing  on  a  lute, 
bound  the  copy  of  the  Mazarine  Bible  now  in  Eton 
College  library,  and  also  another  copy  of  the  same  book 
sold  lately  at  the  Brayton  Ives  sale  in  New  York. 
Anthony  Koburger,  of  Nuremberg,  one  of  the  most 
important  printers  and  stationers  of  the  i5th  century, 
bound  his  books  in  a  very  elaborate  and  distinctive 
manner.  He  gave  up  the  use  of  small  dies,  and  by 
means  of  large  tools  covered  the  side  with  a  handsome 
and  harmonious  design.  He  also  printed  the  title  of  the 
book  in  gold  upon  the  top  of  the  obverse  cover.  It 
seems  to  have  been  in  Germany  that  half-binding  was 
first  introduced,  for  we  find  many  specimens  of  the  i5th 
century  with  the  wooden  boards  left  without  covering 
and  the  back  formed  of  tooled  pigskin  or  leather,  the 
sides  being  in  some  cases  fastened  to  the  wooden  boards 
by  thin  strips  of  metal. 

Italian  bindings  have  little  interest,  being  as  a  rule  Italian 

XV.  Cent. 

ornamented   solely   with  varieties    of   plain    interlaced  bindings, 
patterns,  probably  Saracenic  in  origin,  though  not  unlike 
those   found   on  early  English  bindings.      They  have, 
however,    a  few  peculiarities  in  the  finishing,  amongst 


io         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

which  we  may  notice  the  custom  of  putting  four  clasps, 
one  at  top  and  bottom  as  well  as  the  two  ordinary  ones  ; 
and  another,  more  rarely  found,  no  doubt  introduced 
after  the  fall  of  Constantinople  in  1453,  and  copied  from 
the  bindings  of  Greek  MSS.,  of  running  a  groove  down 
the  edge  of  the  covers,  a  peculiarity  of  Eastern  European 
binding.  This  habit  of  putting  a  groove  on  the  edges 
of  the  covers  of  Greek  books  continued  well  into  the 
1 6th  century;  it  occurs  in  many  of  the  Aldine  bindings 
and  also  on  some  made  for  Henri  II. 
invention  of  The  most  important  event  in  the  history  of  Nether- 

the  panel 

stamp.  landish  binding  was  the  invention  of  the  panel  stamp 
about  the  middle  of  the  i4th  century.  By  its  means  the 
whole  of  the  side  of  a  small  book  could  be  decorated 
from  one  block,  and  as  soon  as  books  of  small  size 
began  to  issue  in  large  numbers  from  the  printing  press 
its  economic  advantages  were  recognised  and  it  was 
universally  used  in  the  Low  Countries,  France  and 
England.  In  the  Netherlands  trade  guilds  were  very 
strict,  not  only  the  binder's  trade  mark  but  his  designs 
also  being  protected,  and  from  the  archives  of  these 
guilds  a  good  deal  can  be  gathered  about  the  bindings, 
and  the  career  of  individual  binders  traced.  Among  the 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         11 

early  bindings  are  a  few  curiously  produced  from  metal 
stamps  of  large  size  which  have  somewhat  the  appearance 
of  the  hand-worked  productions  of  the  period.  The 
ornamentation  of  later  Netherlandish  binding  is  generally 

formal,  the  centre  panel  with  spirals  of  foliage  containing  Netherland- 
ish panels. 

birds,  beasts  or  grotesque  creatures,  while  round  the  edge 
runs  a  motto  Or  text  with  not  unfrequently  the  name  of 
the  binder;  indeed,  these  bindings  give  more  explicit 
information  than  those  of  any  other  country.  Such 
examples  were  produced  by  Johannes  Bollcaert  with  the 
legend  "Ob  laudem  Christi  hunc  librum  recte  ligavi 
Johannes  Bollcaert,"  another  panel  has  "  Exerce  studium 
quamvis  perceperis  artem  Martinus  Vulcanius,"  a  third 
"  In  sudore  vultus  tui  vesceris  pane  tuo  per  Petrum 
Elsenum."  Similar  examples  were  produced  by  Ludo- 
vicus  Bloc,  by  the  numerous  members  of  the  family  of 
Gavere,  and  many  others.  Two  panels  bear  the  names 
respectively  of  Jacobus  illuminator,  and  Jacobus  filius 
Vincentii  illuminatoris.  An  Antwerp  binding  has  the 
inscription  "  Johannes  de  Woudix  Antwerpie  me  fecit." 
Another,  from  Ghent,  "Joris  de  Gavere  me  ligavit  in 
Gandavo ;  omnes  sancti  angeli,  archangeli  dei  orate  pro 
nobis."  A  binding  in  the  Bodleian  has  this  panel  on  the 


12        HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

side,  together  with  another  similar  in  style,  with  the  name 
"Johannes  Guilibert,"  and  is  the  only  example  known  of 
a  binding  containing  the  signed  panels  of  two  different 
binders.  Pictorial  panels  do  not  seem  to  have  been  so 
commonly  used  as  they  were  in  France,  but  there  are 
some  of  extremely  good  execution.  A  very  beautiful 
specimen  bears  the  initials  B.  K.,  and  has  on  one  side 
the  Adoration  of  the  Magi  and  on  the  other  the  Annun- 
ciation. Another,  with  the  entry  into  Jerusalem  on  one 
side  and  the  Adoration  of  the  Magi  on  the  other,  has  the 
inscription,  "Frater  Johannes  de  Weesalia  ob  laudem 
xpristi  et  matris  ejus  librum  hunc  recte  ligavit." 
French  panel  From  France  we  have  a  very  large  series  of  panel 

stamps. 

stamps,  many  of  great  beauty.  Jehan  Norins  uses  two 
large  panels,  one  containing  the  vision  of  the  Emperor 
Augustus  (Ara  coeli),  and  having  his  initials  at  the  base, 
the  other  with  St.  Bernard,  and  a  border  containing  the 
Sibyls.  This  binding  has  been  many  times  reproduced, 
but  the  initials  J.  N.  have  always  been  misread  I.  H. 
Norins  used  also  a  small  panel  with  a  formal  acorn 
pattern  containing  the  name  in  full.  Alexandre  Alyat, 
a  Paris  stationer,  about  1500,  used  a  large  stamp  with  a 
figure  of  Christ  and  the  emblems  of  the  Passion.  Andre 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         13 

Boule,  Edmund  Bayeux,  Guillaume  Baudart,  and 
Hemon  Lefevre  used  panels  depicting  the  martyrdom  of 
St.  Sebastian ;  Jehan  Dupin,  J.  G.,  and  others,  a  panel 

/ 

with  four  saints ;  P.  Gerard,  a  representation  of  the 
Crucifixion  ;  I.  L.,  the  Mass  of  St.  Gregory.  The  num- 
ber of  the  French  panel  stamps,  however,  is  so  large  that 
it  is  impossible  to  attempt  to  enumerate  them  in  a  small 
space.  The  binders  of  Rouen  and  Caen  produced  Norman 

binders. 

bindings  most  nearly  resembling  English  work,  owing,  no 
doubt,  to  their  intimate  business  relations  with  this 
country.  As  they  produced  English  service  books  in 
large  numbers,  they  would  probably  bind  them  for  the 
English  market,  so  that  it  is  quite  probable  that  even 
many  of  the  bindings  with  representative  English  devices 
upon  them  may  have  been  produced  in  Normandy.  A 
binding  in  the  University  Library,  Cambridge,  with  the 
initials  A.  R.,  bears  the  shields  of  London  and  St.  George, 
but  was  almost  certainly  produced  abroad.  Among  the 
Rouen  binders  we  may  specially  note  J.  Richard ;  J. 
Huvin,  whose  panels  contain  figures  of  St.  Michael  and 
St.  Nicholas ;  Jean  Moulin,  who  used  panels  with  a  pun- 
ning allusion  to  his  name  representing  a  miller  ;  R.  Mace', 
who  used,  among  others,  a  panel  with  the  Annunciation ; 


14         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

and  Denis  Roce,  whose  bindings  contain  figures  of  four 
saints.     All  these  binders,  except  the  last,  placed  their 
names  in  full  upon  their  bindings. 
English  The  introduction  of  the  art  of  printing  into  England, 

XV.  Ocnt. 

bindings,  and  the  consequent  influx  of  foreign  craftsmen,  materially 
changed  the  character  of  English  binding  and  destroyed  its 
distinctive  style.  The  old  customs  lingered  for  a  while,  as 
we  see  from  the  Oxford  bindings  of  the  time,  and  in  some 
cases  the  old  dies  were  still  used  ;  but  when  the  foreign 
printers  (and  they  were,  as  a  rule,  their  own  binders)  so 
far  out-numbered  the  English,  it  was  but  natural  that 
foreign  styles  should  conquer.  William  Caxton,  our 
first  printer,  when  he  returned  to  England  from  Bruges 
in  1477,  no  doubt  brought  his  binding  tools  with  him, 
and  used  them  in  the  style  which  he  had  learnt  abroad. 
His  bindings,  always  of  leather,  were  ruled  with  diagonal 
lines,  and  the  diamond-shaped  compartments  thus 
formed  were  ornamented  with  stamps  of  flowers  and 
fabulous  animals.  The  border  of  the  panels  was 
generally  formed  of  triangular  stamps  of  dragons. 
Caxton's  stamps  passed,  after  his  death  in  1491, 
into  the  hands  of  his  successor  Wynkyn  de  Worde, 
who  used  them  until  the  beginning  of  the  i6th 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         15 

century,  when  they  seem  to  have  fallen  into  other 
hands,  and  some  at  any  rate  were  used  by  the  stationer 
Henry  Jacobi. 

The  early  Oxford  press  was  carried  on  by  Theodore  Oxford 

XV.  Cent. 

Rood,  of  Cologne,  in  partnership  with  Thomas  Hunte,  bindings. 
an  English  stationer,  and  their  bindings  exhibit  an 
interesting  combination  of  the  two  national  styles.  The 
stamps,  evidently  of  foreign  design,  were,  no  doubt,  sup- 
plied by  Rood  ;  but  their  disposition  upon  the  binding  is 
in  the  old  English  style.  On  some  examples  we  find 
the  dies  disposed  in  large  circles  or  portions  of  circles, 
a  peculiarity  of  early  English  work,  and  one  which  gave 
such  a  distinctive  character  to  the  1 2th  century  bindings 
of  Durham  and  Winchester.  Oxford  bindings  of  this 
period  are  very  easily  distinguishable  from  others,  nor 
are  they  at  all  uncommon,  for  the  demand  for  books  in 
Oxford  must  have  been  very  large.  Lettou  and  Machlinia, 
the  first  London  printers,  were  also  binders  of  books,  but 
as  only  two  bindings  can  at  present  be  safely  assigned  to 
them,  there  are  but  slight  grounds  for  forming  any 
opinion  upon  their  style  of  work.  There  are  of  course 
numberless  bindings  belonging  to  the  end  of  the  1 5th 
century,  which  from  their  workmanship  and  ornamenta- 


16         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

tion  can  safely  be  put  down  as  English,  but  which  can- 
not be  ascribed  to  any  particular  binder  or  town. 
English  It  is  impossible  to  determine  at  what  date  the  panel 

panel- 
stamps,        stamp  was  introduced  into  England,  and  there  are  few  early 

examples  that  can  with  any  certainty  be  assigned  to  the 
1 5th  century.  The  earliest  example  perhaps  is  to  be  found 
on  a  loose  binding  in  the  library  of  Westminster  Abbey. 
The  sides  are  tooled  at  the  edges  with  small  tools,  and 
in  the  centre  is  a  twice-repeated  stamp  with  the  arms 
presumably  of  Edward  IV.  This  binding  has,  however, 
no  binder's  mark. 

Frederic  Egmondt  and  Nicolas  Lecompte,  stationers, 
who  came  to  England  as  early  as  1493,  used  panels 
bearing  their  initials  and  marks.  Lecompte's  binding  is 
evidently  of  foreign  design,  and  ornamented  simply  with 
an  arabesque  floral  pattern.  Egmondt's  has  more 
variety.  His  most  elaborate  panel,  which  bears  his 
name  in  full  at  the  base,  represents  a  wild  man  and 
woman  standing  on  either  side  of  a  tree  covered  with 
some  kind  of  fruit,  and  bearing  in  one  hand  flowering 
boughs,,  while  with  the  other  they  assist  in  supporting  a 
shield  bearing  Egmondt's  mark  and  initials,  suspended 
by  a  belt  from  the  branches  above  them.  Besides  this 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.          17 

he  used  a  small  panel  with  a  Tudor  rose  and  vine  leaves, 
surrounded  by  a  border  of  leaves  and  flowers,  and 
bearing  his  mark  and  initials. 

A  similar  design  was  used  by  Richard  Pynson,  and  is  pynson, 

1493-1528. 
found  in  conjunction  with  a  panel  bearing  his  arms  and 

supporters  as  well  as  his  trade-mark.  Herbert  ^speaks  of 
bindings  by  Pynson  with  his  mark  on  one  side  and  a  lull- 
length  portrait  of  a  king  on  the  other,  but  such  a  binding 
is  not  at  present  known.  To  Wynkyn  de  Worde  no  w.deWordc 

'493-I534- 

panel  can  with  safety  be  assigned.  He  used  at  first 
Caxton's  dies  with  a  few  additions,  notably  a  large  die  or 
small  stamp  with  the  Royal  Arms.  At  a  later  date  his 
bindings  were  executed  probably  by  Netherlandish 
binders  working  in  England,  who  would  use  their  own 
stamps.  Among  the  witnesses  to  his  will  we  find  the 
name  of  J.  Gaver,  who  was  probably  one  of  the  large 
family  of  Gavere,  binders  in  the  Low  Countries.  There 
is  a  binding  in  the  library  of  St.  John's  College,  Oxford, 
Netherlandish  in  ornament  but  English  in  workmanship, 
with  the  initials  I.  G.,  which  might  possibly  have  been 
executed  by  him.  De  Worde  also  mentions  in  his  will 
Alard,  a  bookbinder,  and  Nowel,  the  bookbinder  in  Shoe 
Lane ;  but  none  of  their  work  has  been  identified. 


1 8         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 
English  About  the  beginning  of  the  i6th  century  two  panels 

heraldic  .  ,        .        _          ,          i_  •     j 

panels.  came  very  much  into  favour  with  the  London  binders  ; 
one  containing  the  arms  of  France  and  England  quartered 
on  a  shield  and  supported  by  the  dragon  and  greyhound, 
supporters  which  were  discarded  in  1528;  the  other 
having  in  the  centre  the  Tudor  rose  supported  by  angels. 
Round  the  rose  run  two  ribbons  bearing  the  motto — 

' '  Haec  rosa  virtutis  de  celo  missa  sereno. 
Eternum  florens  regia  sceptra  feret. " 

A  fond  belief,  strongly  encouraged  by  booksellers, 
has  grown  up  amongst  collectors  that  such  books  once 
formed  part  of  the  library  of  Henry  VIII.,  a  theory  which 
only  ignorance  can  recommend.  It  would  be  as  rational 
to  imagine  that  all  shops  which  have  over  their  door  the 
Royal  Arms  were  residences  of  the  Queen.  Why  such 
designs  were  so  popular  with  binders  is  unknown ;  but  it 
is  not  improbable  that  they  represent  some  privilege  or 
are  the  signs  of  some  guild.  In  the  upper  corners  of 
these  panels  are  the  sun  and  moon,  and  shields  with  the 
cross  of  St.  George  and  the  arms  of  London,  while  in  the 
base  we  find  as  a  rule  the  initials  and  mark  of  the  binder. 
Amongst  others  who  used  these  panels  we  may  specially 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         19 

mention  Julian  Notary,  the  famous  printer,  who  had  two 
varieties,  and  Henry  Jacobi,  an  early  London  stationer, 
who  had  three. 

Variations  of  the  Royal  Arms  were  used  by  H.  N., 
who,  not  being  a  citizen,  omitted  the  arms  of  London 
from  his  panels,  and  by  G.  G.,  who  discarded  the 
proper  supporters  of  the  Royal  Arms  and  put  two  angels 
in  their  places.  E.  G.,  A.  H.,  R.  O.,  R.  L.,  G.  R.,  M.  D., 
and  John  Reynes,  all  used  the  Royal  Arms  in  one  form 
or  another,  and  besides  these  there  are  some  large 
unsigned  panels  bearing  the  arms  of  Henry  VIII. 
quartered  with  those  of  Catherine  of  Aragon  or  Anne 
Boleyn. 

Pictorial  panels  do  not  seem  to  have  been  so  popular  Pictorial 

panels. 

in  England  as  they  were  abroad,  and  many  of  those  we 
find  in  use  were  probably  of  foreign  manufacture.  Two 
elaborate  early  examples  depicting  St.  Michael  and  St. 
George,  with  a  binder's  mark  of  a  head  upon  a  shield, 
and  another  of  St.  George  signed  L.  W.,  are  most  probably 
of  English  work,  though  it  is  impossible  to  be  certain,  as 
the  binders  of  Rouen  and  Caen  produced  work  in  the 
same  style.  Another  beautiful  binding  of  doubtful 
nationality  has  on  one  side  St.  Barbara  with  her  palm 


20         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

branch  and  three-windowed  tower,  and  on  the  other  the 
Mass  of  St.  Gregory.  It  is  worth  noticing  as  a  distinc- 
tion between  English  and  foreign  bindings  that  the  small 
books  bound  in  England  have  as  a  rule  three  bands  on 
the  back,  foreign  ones  having  four  or  five.  This  rule 
however  has  often  exceptions,  especially  in  the  case  of 
Norman  work,  and  can  only  be  taken  as  evidence  in  con- 
nection with  other  and  weightier  facts.  I.  R.,  whose 
stamps  fell  at  a  later  date  into  the  hands  of  John  Reynes 
and  were  used  with  his  own,  had  two  designs — one  of 
St.  George  slaying  the  dragon,  and  another  of  the 
Baptism  of  Christ.  The  Annunciation  was  a  favourite 
subject,  and  we  find  many  varieties  of  it,  the  most 
elaborate  being  one  with  the  initials  A.  R.  of  very 
foreign  appearance,  but  with  the  shields  of  St.  George 
and  the  City  of  London  in  the  borders.  Nicholas 
Speryng,  the  Cambridge  binder,  A.  H.,  and  L.  P.  had 
similar  panels  ;  and  there  are  many  more  without  initials 
or  mark.  '  Henry  Jacobi  had  a  panel  with  "  Our  Lady  of 
Pity  ; "  A.  R.,  the  Annunciation  and  Baptism  of  Christ ; 
G.  R.,  a  panel  with  four  saints,  similar  to  many  French 
bindings  of  the  period,  and  surrounded  by  the  motto 
"  Quidquid  agas  prudenter  agas  et  respice  finem  :  O  mater 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         21 

dei  memento  mei ; "  also  a  similar  panel,  rather  smaller 
and  without  the  motto.  The  best  known  of  these  bind- 
ings is  one  produced  by  John  Reynes,  copied  from  a  cut 
in  a  French  Book  of  Hours,  representing  the  emblems  of 
the  Passion  arranged  heraldically  upon  a  shield  with 
supporters,  and  inscribed  below  "  Redemptoris  Mundi 
Arma." 

There  are  a  few  late  foreign  bindings  worthy  of  notice.  Later  foreign 

bindings. 

A  binder  whose  initials  were  I.  P.,  and  who  was  asso- 
ciated with  the  Augustinian  Priory  of  St.  Martin  and 
St.  Gregory  at  Louvain,  had  several  stamps.  His  finest, 
remarkable  for  the  beauty  and  delicacy  of  its  design,  has 
a  figure  of  the  dying  Cleopatra  with  a  variety  of  arabesque 
work,  a  small  medallion  portrait  in  the  centre,  and  the 
motto  "  Ingenium  volens  nihil  non."  Another  panel 
bears  a  figure  of  Hope  with  a  verse  from  the  Psalms,  and 
seems  to  have  been  used  by  another  binder,  I.  B.,  examples 
sometimes  occurring  with  these  initials.  He  had  also  a 
panel  with  a  figure  of  Lucretia  stabbing  herself,  and  in 
the  border  we  find  the  engraved  date  1534.  It  contains 
also  the  binder's  mark,  his  motto,  and  the  monogram  of 
the  Augustinian  monastery.  A  fourth  binding  is  entirely 
unlike  any  other  stamped  binding  of  the  time.  The 


22         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

panel  is  filled  with  a  frame  of  elaborate  interlacing  rope- 
work,  and  has  in  the  centre  a  shield  with  the  binder's 
mark  and  initials  :  it  has  also  the  engraved  date  1540. 
A  curious  Low  Countries  binding  of  about  the  same  date 
has  a  representation  of  the  death  of  Abel. 
Cambridge  In  England  about  this  time  a  panel  came  into  fashion 

bindings. 

ornamented  with  medallion  heads,  which  was  used  by  John 
Reynes,  Godfrey,  N.  S.  (Nicholas  Singleton?),  M.  D., 
T.  P.,  G.  P.,  and  others.  It  has  little  beauty  to  recom- 
mend it,  being  in  a  poor  debased  Renaissance  style,  and 
is  the  last  production  of  English  work  of  this  class. 

From  the  Cambridge  stationers  we  have  a  most  inter- 
esting series  of  bindings.  Nicholas  Speryng,  coming 
probably  from  Antwerp,  used  two  panels.  On  one  is  the 
Annunciation  with  his  mark  and  initials ;  on  the  other,  in 
allusion  to  his  Christian  name,  the  favourite  design  of 
St.  Nicholas  restoring  to  life  the  three  pickled  children, 
with  the  name  in  full,  and  incorrectly  printed  Nicholas 
Spiernick.  Besides  these  panels  he  had  at  least  three 
rolls  and  an  oblong  stamp,  all  bearing  his  initials  and 
mark ;  Garrat  Godfrey,  his  fellow  stationer  perhaps 
identical  with  Gerard  van  Graten,  having  rolls  similar  in 
design.  On  a  book  in  the  library  of  Westminster  Abbey 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         23 

we  find  the  rolls  of  both,  one  being  used  to  obliterate  the 
other.  John  Lair  de  Siberch,  the  first  Cambridge  printer, 
used  a  broad  roll  with  his  initials,  which  fell  later  on  into 
the  hands  probably  of  Speryng,  who,  erasing  the  I,  sub- 
stituted his  own  initial  N.  It  is  worth  noticing  that  the 
Cambridge  binders  frequently  made  use  of  leather  stained 
a  dull  red,  a  peculiarity  rarely  found  in  other  English 
bindings. 

The  introduction  of  the  roll  was  rendered  necessary  introduction 

of  the  roll. 

by  the  impossibility  of  decorating  folio  books  with  the 
panel  stamp.  At  first  the  borders  round  large  books 
were  formed  from  small  dies  placed  end  to  end,  and  later 
on  from  oblong  stamps  used  in  the  same  way ;  but  this 
system  was  too  laborious  not  to  be  soon  superseded, 
and  the  roll  took  its  place.  With  the  invention  of  this 
pernicious  tool  the  rapid  decline  of  stamped  binding 
commenced.  At  first  these  rolls  were  of  fine  broad 
work,  and  produced  a  handsome  effect.  An  excellent 
specimen  was  used  at  Paris  by  Claude  Chevallon  con. 
taining  a  rebus  on  his  name.  In  England  the  various 
royal  emblems  in  compartments  often  formed  the  subject, 
as  in  the  beautiful  roll  used  by  Siberch  ;  while  a  roll 
with  flowers  and  fabulous  animals  was  still  more  common, 


24         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

a  very  fine  example  being  used  by  John  Reynes.  At  a  later 
period  these  rolls  became  narrower  and  the  ornament 
more  formal,  and  are  hardly  distinguishable  from  foreign 
work  of  the  same  period.  Singleton  the  printer  used 
one  of  these  rolls  with  his  mark  and  initials.  On  nearly 
all  small  initials  may  be  found,  but  it  is  not  improbable 
that  at  this  late  date  they  are  those  of  the  engraver  of 
the  tool  rather  than  of  the  binder  who  used  it.  The 
last  and  worst  state  of  roll  binding  was  reached  about 
the  beginning  of  the  i7th  century,  when  the  design, 
instead  of  being  struck  from  a  roll  cut  as  an  intaglio, 
and  appearing  raised,  was  struck  from  a  tool  cut  en 
cama'ieu  and  appeared  indented.  Abroad,  during  the 
latter  part  of  the  i6th  century,  stamped  binding  sur- 
vived only  in  Germany,  but  the  bold  character  of  the 
early  work  was  gone.  In  spite  of  the  beauty  of  the  design 
and  the  excellence  of  the  execution,  the  sides  present 
a  meagre  and  unsatisfactory  appearance,  due  partly  to  the 
great  delicacy  and  consequent  want  of  depth  in  the  tools, 
and  partly  to  the  use  of  pigskin  and  parchment  in  place 
Later  of  leather.  The  designs,  though  fine,  were  over-elaborated, 

German 

bindings,      and  the  wealth  of  detail  was  wasted  on  a  leather  too 
hard  to  receive  it.     The  centre  panels  of  these  bindings, 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         25 

often  designed  by  the  greatest  artists,  contain  as  a  rule 
portraits  of  celebrated  people,  ancient  and  modern, 
depicted  in  a  very  German  manner.  Lucretia,  with  puffed 
sleeves  and  a  feathered  hat,  stabs  herself  elegantly 
between  the  ribbons  which  tie  her  ornamental  bodice  ; 
Judith,  fashionably  attired  in  a  similar  style,  holds  the 
fiercely  mustachioed  -head  of  Holofernes  ;  "  Justice,"  not 
unlike  Queen  Elizabeth,  with  her  hair  in  an  embroidered 
net,  stands  gazing  open-eyed  upon  a  very  unbalanced 
pair  of  scales  which  she  holds  in  her  hand.  Other  panels 
contain  portraits  of  such  modern  celebrities  as  Martin 
Luther,  Melanchthon,  Calvin,  or  the  reigning  sovereign. 
The  borders  contain  coats  of  arms  and  small  medallion 
heads.  These  bindings  bear,  as  a  rule,  the  name  or  ini- 
tials of  the  binder,  often  that  of  the  designer  as  well,  and 
in  many  cases  are  dated.  However  good  their  execution 
may  be,  they  bear  unmistakable  signs  of  the  decadence 
of  stamped  work,  which,  so  far  as  producing  anything 
artistic  is  concerned,  now  died  out  absolutely. 


GILT   BINDINGS. 

IN  the  following  historical  sketch  of  gold  tooled  bind- 
ings an  attempt  is  made  to  give  such  an  account  as  will 
enable  the  student  to  trace  the  development  of  the  art 
through  successive  epochs  and  in  different  countries. 
It  is  for  this  reason  that  some  pains  have  been  taken  to 
describe  the  ornament  characteristic  of  the  different  styles 
and  periods. 

As  the  art  is  especially  a  French  art,  the  history  of  it 
cannot  fail  to  be  in  the  main  a  history  of  French  binding, 
and  it  has  therefore  seemed  best  to  make  its  progress  in 
that  country  the  groundwork  of  the  present  sketch,  sup- 
plying collaterally  such  details  of  its  contemporaneous 
development  in  England  and  elsewhere  as  may  be  neces- 
sary. Moreover,  as  the  Kings  of  France  from  the  time 
of  Louis  XII.  to  that  of  Louis  XV.  were  patrons  of 
binding,  and  the  books  from  their  royal  libraries  offer  the 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         27 

most  valuable  material  for  its  study,  it  seems  most  con- 
venient to  treat  the  subject  according  to  their  reigns, 
at  all  events  during  the  important  period  of  the 
Renaissance. 

We  shall  consider  the  subject  as  it  falls  naturally 
into  three  main  periods  :  the  first  from  1494,  when 
Aldus  Manutius  set  up  his  printing  press  at  Venice,  to  the 
end  of  the  i6th  century.  This  was  the  period  of  Maioli 
and  Grolier,  of  the  royal  bindings  done  for  Francis  I. 
and  Henri  II.  The  art  attained  almost  at  once  its 
highest  perfection,  at  all  events  from  the  point  of  view 
of  design.  Secondly,  the  i7th  century,  with  which  are 
associated  the  names  of  the  Eves  and  Le  Gascon. 
Thirdly,  the  i8th  century,  the  time  of  Boyet,  Duseuil, 
Antoine-Michel  Padeloup  and  the  Deromes,  in  France, 
and  of  the  Harleian  style  and  Roger  Payne  in  Eng- 
land. Any  division  must  necessarily  be  somewhat 
arbitrary,  but  it  happens  that  in  this  case  the  centuries 
correspond  pretty  definitely  to  the  different  types  of  the 
art  at  different  periods  of  its  development. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Italian  bind-       IT  was  in  Italy  that,  as  far  as  Europe  is  concerned, 

ings  during 

the  i6th  and  artistic  tooled  binding  had  its  rise,  and  it  was  the  intro- 

17th  cen- 

duction  of  Arabian  art  by  means  of  Venetian  commerce 
that  gave  the  initiative.  The  ornamentation  of  early 
Italian  binding  is  largely  derived  from  that  of  Persian 
and  Arabian  MSS.  One  style,  particularly  known  as 
"Venetian "  "  Venetian,"  was  obtained  directly  from  the  East,  and  is 

bindings. 

most  familiar  to  us  now  on  the  outside  of  Persian  books. 
The  board  was  coated  with  a  sort  of  paper  composition, 
the  centre  and  corners  then  cut  or  stamped  out  in  panels, 
and  the  whole,  both  of  the  recessed  tablets  and  the  upper 
ground,  covered  with  a  thinly-pared  leather.  This  was 
next  coated  with  a  coloured  lacquer,  and  finally  decorated 
and  painted  with  arabesques  in  gold. 

Mosaics.  The  painted  mosaics  so  prevalent  in  France    during 

the  best  period  came  from  Italy.     Geometrical  interlac- 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         29 

ings  were  filled  in  with  a  sort  of  coloured  and  varnished 
incrustation,  and  then  bordered  in  gold  lines.  Very  bril- 
liant when  first  finished,  the  composition  in  time  cracked 
and  peeled  off,  thus  injuring  the  gold  line  work  that 
encircled  it.  Mosaics  of  inlaid  leather,  extremely  rare, 
though  not  unknown,  in  the  i6th  century,  acquired  a 
partial  vogue  in  the  lyth,  and  in  the  i8th  the  incrusta- 
tion method  had  entirely  disappeared. 

Cameo  bindings  also  originated  and  were  prevalent  in  Cameo  bind- 
ings. 
Italy  during  the  early  part  of  the  i6th  century.     These 

had  centre  pieces  of  designs  in  relief  taken  from  antique 
gems  and  medals.  They  must  be  distinguished  from 
the  imitations  which  became  popular  in  France  for  a 
short  time.  The  real  were  made  of  some  sort  of 
lacquered  paste  put  on  to  the  leather,  and  of  this  sort  is 
the  oval  stamp  on  the  books  of  Canevari ;  the  imita- 
tions obtained  the  relief  by  stamping  the  leather,  and 
of  this  kind  are  those  bearing  the  medallion  portrait  of 
Henri  II. 

It  is  not  exactly  known  when  gold  tooling  was  first  used  introduction 

of  gold. 

on  bindings  in  Italy,  though  it  is  said  that  there  were  beau- 
tiful 1 3th  century  specimens  done  in  Syria.  It  was  probably 
introduced  during  the  last  quarter  of  the  i5th  century, 


30         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

and  the  practice  no  doubt  came  from  the  Saracens. 
The  European  foster-mother  of  the  art  was  Venice,  and 
its  adoption  is  probably  to  be  assigned  to  Aldus  at  his 
own  press  there,  after  1494,  although  there  are  occasional 
earlier  instances.  From  this  period  at  all  events  dates 
the  decoration  of  binding  by  means  of  small  tools,  curves 
and  lines  used  in  combination,  as  distinguished  from  the 
stamped  blind  work  characteristic  of  the  preceding  period 
in  England,  and  prevalent  much  later  in  other  countries, 
especially  in  Germany.  Those  tools  bear  witness  to  the 
influence  that  Eastern — and  especially  Arabian — art  had 
over  Venice.  It  is  thought  that  her  commercial  rela- 
tions with  the  Levant  attracted  a  large  number  of  Greek 
and  Arab  workmen,  who  brought  with  them  their  art 
traditions,  and  some  of  whom  were  undoubtedly  em- 
Aldus,  1494.  ployed  by  Aldus  at  his  press.  Others,  again,  consider 
that  much  of  the  Eastern  character  in  the  Aldine  bind- 
ings, such  as  the  corded  and  dotted  borders,  is  due  to 
Aldus  and  others  copying  the  bindings  of  the  manuscripts 
introduced  in  such  numbers  into  Italy  after  the  fall  of 
Constantinople,  when  the  revival  of  learning  took  place. 
There  is  in  the  MS.  Department  of  the  British  Museum 
a  folio  Virgil  of  the  last  quarter  of  the  i5th  century,  the 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         3* 

sides  of  which  are  very  interesting  specimens  of  Italian 
binding  under  the  direct  influence  of  the  East.  It  is  in 
brown  calf,  and  has  in  the  centre  panel  a  circular  orna- 
ment and  corners.  These  are  entirely  Oriental  in  design, 
and  Arabic  letters  signifying  "  The  kingdom  is  God's  " 
form  part  of  the  decoration.  The  corners  are  segments  of 
the  same  circular  ornament.  The  design  is  produced  by  a 
very  fine  matting  of  the  ground  with  a  small  point,  and  is 
finely  outlined  in  gold.  This  panel  is  surrounded  by 
blind  lines,  and  then  a  fine  interlaced  cable  pattern  partly 
in  blind  and  partly  in  gold.  The  patterns  of  this  kind 
without  gold  are  older  than  Aldus,  and  were  used  at 
Venice  from  about  1470.  The  earliest  books  that  Aldus 
issued  have  a  gold  stamp  ;  then  followed  blind  or  gold 
parallel  lines  with  corner  ornaments,  from  1500 — 1510, 
sober  in  style,  and  among  the  best  early  bindings  to  be 
found ;  and  lastly,  those  elaborate  geometrical  patterns 
with  which  the  name  of  Grolier  is  associated.  He 
met  Grolier  in  1512,  and  the  interlaced  patterns  begin 
about  1520.  The  leather  he  used  was  a  smooth  skin, 
generally  olive  in  colour.  He  was  the  first  to  disuse 
wooden  boards.  The  earliest  Aldine  tools  were  solid, 
similar,  indeed,  to  those  used  in  the  printing  press,  and 


32         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Saracenic  in  character.  Maioli  had  them  modified  for 
his  bindings  by  using  them  hollow,  that  is  to  say  only 
in  outline,  and  Grolier,  finding  them  heavy,  had  them 
altered  for  his  use  to  the  same  ornament  barred,  or  azured 
as  it  is  called,  from  the  colour  blue  in  heraldry  being 
represented  in  this  manner.  The  azured  tools  were  first 
used  by  Grolier  for  the  bindings  done  in  France,  between 
1530  and  1540;  no  azured  tools  are  found  on  French 
bindings  before  that  date.  Such  few  Italian  examples  as 
are  seen  were  probably  imitated  from  French  bindings. 
Maioli.  The  bindings  of  Maioli,  are,  roughly  speaking,  contem- 
porary with  those  of  Grolier,  no  known  specimen  being 
earlier  than  1530.  Tommaso  Maioli  was  an  Italian 
bibliophile  still  living  in  1549.  His  uncle,  Michele 
Maioli,  a  scientific  writer,  was  also  a  collector,  but  no 
books  bound  for  Michele  are  known.  Tommaso  had 
an  extensive  library  of  well-bound  and  ornamented 
books,  some  of  which  passed  by  exchange  into  the  col- 
lection of  Grolier. 

As  the  designs  on  the  books  of  both  collectors  are 
somewhat  similar  in  character,  and  as  Grolier's  early 
books  were  of  Italian  workmanship,  it  may  be  well  here 
to  point  out  some  differentiating  features.  Maioli  designs 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         33 

are  distinguished  for  their  flowing  scroll-work,  the  grace- 
ful curves  of  which  interlace  freely  with  the  framework. 
The  framework,  which  is  less  the  design  than  the  scroll- 
work, is  made  up  of  curves  rather  than  of  geometrical 
figures.  The  ornaments  are  moresque  in  character, 
mostly  in  outline,  though  occasionally  azured,  and  part  of  Maioii  and 

Grolier. 

the  field  is  often  enriched  with  dots.  The  designs  have 
certainly  more  artistic  merit  than  Grolier's  on  account  of 
the  perfection  of  their  scroll-work.  On  one  side  of  the 
book  is  generally  to  be  found  the  motto,  "  THO.  MAIOLI 
ET  AMICORUM,"  and  on  the  other  "  INIMICI  MEI  MEA 

MIHI      NON      ME     MIHI,"     Or     else     "  INGRATIS       SERV1RE 

NEPHAS."  On  one  book  is  found  "  PORTIO  MEA  DOMINE 
SIT  IN  TERRA  viVENTiUM,"  and  on  those  not  bound  for 
him  he  had  a  monogram  composed  of  the  letters 
A.E.H.I.L.M.O.P.S.T.,  which  form  his  name,  though 
this  does  not  explain  the  E  H  and  P.  On  the  books 
bound  for  Grolier  the  interlaced  framework  is  the  design 
itself.  Instead  of  flowing  curved  lines  we  have  a  geome- 
trical composition  of  interlaced  straight  lines  and  semi- 
circles. The  ornaments  are  similar  in  character  to  those 
on  Maioli's  books,  but  azured  and  differently  placed ; 
they  do  not  blend  with  the  scroll-work  but  are  put  in 

D 


34         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

spaces  without  regard  to  the  perfection  of  curve  seen  in 
the  best  Maioli  designs.  Sometimes  a  mosaic  effect  is 
produced  by  an  incrustation  of  different  colours  on  the 
band  spaces  between  the  lines.  On  some  of  the  plainer 
books  bound  for  Maioli,  gold  leaf  has  been  rubbed  into 
the  leather,  so  that  the  effect  left  is  that  of  a  bloom  or 
fine  dust,  very  pleasing  to  the  eye.  There  are  also  some 
very  fine  simple  ones  with  a  plain  border  and  the  name 
in  a  panel  or  tablet. 

Some  think  the  only  difference  in  the  books  bound  for 
the  two  collectors  lies  in  the  fact  that  Maioli  always 
preserved  his  florid  Italian  style,  while  Grolier's  taste 
became  more  severe  in  France,  where  he  abandoned 
his  earlier  style  learnt  in  Italy. 

To  the  patronage  of  the  Medici  family  is  largely  due 
the  success  of  binding  in  Italy.  Piero  de  Medici  col- 
lected MSS.  distinguished  for  their  miniatures  and 
decoration,  and  had  them  marked  with  the  fleur  de  lys  ; 
Lorenzo  had  his  books  stamped  with  his  arms,  a  laurel 
branch  and  the  motto  "  SEMPER."  The  collections  of 
Cardinals  Scipione  Lancellotti  and  Bonelli  were  hardly 
less  celebrated,  and  Canevari,  physician  to  either  Urban 
the  VII.  or  Urban  the  VIII.  (or  possibly  to  both), 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         35 

about  the  year  1590  had  his  books  stamped  with  a  design 
that  has  rendered  them  famous.  The  names  of  the  Orsini, 
the  d'Este,  and  the  della  Rovere  together  with  those  of 
Popes  and  Cardinals  are  to  be  found  as  collectors  of  fine 
books,  bindings  from  whose  libraries  are  of  rare  value. 

Italy  had  no  permanent  school  of  binding,  and  though 
the  artistic  inspiration  came  from  her,  it  was  in  France 
that  it  took  root  as  a  fine  art.  Practically,  in  fact,  the 
originality  of  Italian  binding  ceased  to  exist  after  the 
first  half  of  the  i6th  century.  It  is  to  France  that  we 
must  now  pass  to  watch  the  rapid  progress  of  the  art 
towards  perfection.  The  fifty  years  of  the  reigns  of 
Francis  I.  and  Henri  II.  are  the  richest  of  all  in  designs 
for  fine  bindings,  and  contain,  besides  the  French  work 
done  for  those  two  monarchs,  the  bindings  done  else- 
where for  Maioli,  Grolier,  Canevari,  and  Marc  Lauwrin, 
though  which  Lauwrin  it  was  for  whom  bindings  were 
done  is  not  known. 

Royal   bindings  of  the   i5th   century  in  France  are  French  bind- 
ing during 

not  numerous.     Of  extreme  rarity  are  the  bindings  of  the  isth  and 

i6th  cen- 

Charles  VIII.,  and  not  much  more  numerous  those  of  turies- 
Louis  XII.     Louis  was  the  first  who  had  his  motto  and 
device  stamped  on  his  books.     Before  his  marriage  with 


36         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 
Anne  of  Brittany,  we   find   a   semis   of  bees,  and  the 

mottO    "NON    UTITUR    ACULEO    REGINA    GUI    PAREMUS.'' 

After    his     marriage    we     have     sometimes    only    the 
Louis  XIL,  monogram  L.A.,  with  or  without  a  crown,  or  the  arms 

1498-1515. 

of  France  alternating  with  the  ermine  of  Brittany,  and 
the  hedgehog  that  was  also  his  emblem,  with  the  motto 
"  COMINUS  ET  EMINUS."  Louis  was  a  great  collector  of 
books ;  after  the  conquest  of  Milan  he  annexed  part 
of  the  libraries  of  the  Visconti  and  the  Sforza,  and 
he  also  bought  the  collection  of  the  Flemish  amateur, 
Louis  de  la  Gruthuyse.  All  these  books  he  sent  to  his 
library  at  Blois,  whence  they  were  subsequently  re- 
moved by  Francis  I.  to  Fontainebleau.  The  Bibliotheque 
Nationale  and  the  Bibliotheque  Mazarine  each  possess 
one  specimen. 

Grolier's  library,  in  respect  of  size  and  selection,  was 
so  much  the  finest  of  the  time,  and  his  name  is  so 
inseparably  connected  with  the  finest  period  of  binding, 

jeanGroiier,  that  a  brief  account  of  it  is  necessary.     Born  at  Lyons, 
1479-1565. 

in  1479,  of  a  family  that  came  from  Verona,  he  replaced 

his  father,  in  1510,  as  Treasurer  of  the  Duchy  of 
Milan  under  Louis  XII.  In  1512,  he  made  the 
acquaintance  of  the  elder  Aldus  whose  press  he 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         37 

patronised  during  the  remainder  of  his  life.  In  1529 
he  was  sent  by  Francis  I.  as  Ambassador  to  Pope 
Clement  VII.  Many  books  from  the  Aldine  Press  were 
dedicated  to  him  in  terms  that  show  he  aided  Aldus  and 
his  family  with  money,  and  copies  de  luxe  of  all  books 
issued  by  them  were  reserved  for  his  library.  In  1545 
he  became  Treasurer  of  France,  and  in  1547  Finance 
Minister,  both  of  which  functions  he  kept  till  his  death. 
He  helped  to  establish  the  College  de  France,  under 
Francis  L,  superintended  many  architectural  works  like 
that  of  the  Palace  of  Chantilly,  and  invented  a  new 
coinage  under  Henri  II.  His  library  at  the  Hotel  de 
Lyon,  near  to  the  Buci  Gate,  was  composed  of  8,000 
volumes  of  classical  and  Italian  authors — with  but  one 
known  MS.  and  hardly  any  French  printed  books — 
of  which  only  350  have  been  traced.  These  were,  no 
doubt,  mostly  collected  in  Italy.  After  his  death  his 
books  were  divided  among  his  inheritors,  and  sub- 
sequently found  their  way  into  the  chief  private  collec- 
tions of  France.  Most  of  them  became  the  property  of 
Mery  de  Vic,  and  lay  forgotten  for  more  than  a  century 
in  the  Hotel  de  Vic,  which  Grolier  had  bought  from 
the  inheritors  of  Bude'.  The  hotel  remained  in  the 


38         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

possession  of  Grolier's  descendants  until  1676,  when 
it  was  sold.  At  the  sale,  Esprit  Fle'chier,  Bishop  of 
Nismes,  acquired  ten  volumes,  and  it  was  probably 
in  1725,  at  the  Flechier  sale  of  books  in  England,  that 
the  first  Groliers  made  their  appearance  in  this  country. 
Their  prices  were  very  low  until  the  beginning  of 
this  century,  but  have  been  steadily  rising,  especially 
since  1830.  The  sales  of  the  Libri  library  did  more 
than  anything  to  increase  their  value.  The  British 
Museum  possesses  about  thirty  Groliers,  the  Dublin 
University  Library  seven  or  eight,  and  there  are  many 
others  to  be  found  in  this  country  in  private  libraries. 
Sixty-four  volumes  are  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale, 
fifteen  in  that  of  St.  Genevieve,  and  seven  in  the 
Bibliotheque  de  1' Arsenal. 

There  arises  the  question,  did  Grolier  have  his  books 
bound  in  Italy  or  France?  M.  Leroux  de  Lincy,  to 
whose  researches  we  owe  most  information  about  Grolier, 
thinks  that  they  were  chiefly,  though  perhaps  not  exclu- 
sively, bound  in  France,  while  Fournier  thinks  the  reverse. 
It  is  a  point  that  will  probably  never  be  decided,  but  the 
early  ones  were  most  likely  bound  in  Italy  during  his 
sojourn  there.  In  1496,  after  the  great  expedition  to 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         39 

Naples,  skilful  Italian  workmen  came  over  to  the  court 
of  Charles  VIII.,  and  Grolier  may  likewise  have  brought 
Italian  workmen  with  him  on  his  return  from  Italy,  so 
that  even  if  fine  bindings  were  not  known  to  have 
existed  in  France  long  before  the  i6th  century,  they 
could  well  have  been  carried  out  there  during  his  life- 
time. It  is  probable,  however,  that  Grolier  followed 
rather  than  set  a  taste  in  binding,  but  at  the  same  time 
he  no  doubt  formed  a  school  and  created  a  native  art  out 
of  foreign  material,  and  if  the  inspiration  came  from 
Italy  the  development  was  thenceforth  entirely  French. 
The  style  associated  with  his  name  was  in  fashion 
throughout  all  the  i6th  century. 

His  bindings  may  be  divided  into  two  classes — those 
done  for  others,  but  admitted  into  his  collection,  he 
contenting  himself  with  adding  name  and  motto ;  and 
those  which  were  specially  done  for  him.  The  last  may 
be  again  divided  into  those  bound  for  him  in  Venice, 
and  distinctly  Italian  in  character,  and  those  probably 
bound  in  France  between  1540  and  1556.  Those 
specially  bound  for  him  are  in  morocco  or  brown  calf, 
and  the  back,  without  ornament,  has  generally  five  or 
seven  bands,  though  some  few  in  the  Bibliotheque 


AO         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Nationale  are  without  bands  ;  at  the  beginning  and  end 
of  the  volume  there  are  four,  five,  or  six  leaves  of 
guard,  the  third  being  of  vellum.  The  ornamentation 
is  in  compartments,  either  in  one  of  the  rigid  geo- 
metrical styles  which  he  first  adopted,  the  Italian  one 
with  coloured  bands,  or  the  French  in  black  and  gold, 
or  else  in  the  third  and  latest  style,  with  graceful  inter- 
lacings  diversified  by  fleurons  and  other  small  tools  on 
the  side.  The  Italian  Groliers  are  all  painted ;  those 
stained  black  with  gold  lines  are  thought  by  some  to 
mark  the  transition  between  the  Italian  and  French 
styles  and  are  possibly  French,  but  those  with  plain  gold 
lines  only,  without  staining  or  colouring  show  the  pure 
French  style.  The  motto  "  lo.  GROLIERII  ET  AMICORUM," 
or  "ME:  GROLIERII  LUGDUNENS.  ET  AMICORUM,"  is 
generally  found  at  the  bottom  of  the  front  board,  but 
sometimes  in  the  centre  immediately  under  the  title, 
though  when  the  binding  is  of  the  first  class,  it  is 
occasionally  written  in  his  own  hand  on  the  fly  leaf. 
On  the  other  board  is  nearly  always  found  "  PORTIO  MEA, 
DOMINE,  SIT  IN  TERRA  viVENTiUM."  He  had  other 
mottos  besides  the  three  above  named  most  often  used. 
"  TAMQUAM  VENTUS  EST  VITA  MEA  "  is  found  only  on  a 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         41 

copy  of  the  Cortegiano  of  1528,  instead  of  "GROLIERII 
ET  AMICORUM,"  and  on  a:  copy  of  the  Poliphilo  of  1499. 
On  others,  "  CUSTODIT  DOMINUS  OMNES  DILIGENTES  SE, 
ET  OMNES  IMPIOS  DiSPERDET."  His  arms,  before  his 
marriage,  are  a  shield,  the  field  azure  with  three  bezants 
or,  surmounted  by  three  silver  stars.  After  his  marriage 
he  impaled  those  of  his  wife,  Anne  Briconnet.  His 
crest  was  a  gooseberry  bush  with  the  motto,  "  NEC  HERBA 
NEC  ARBOR,"  while  "  AEQUE  DiFFicuLTER,"  together 
with  an  emblem  of  a  hand  coming  out  of  a  cloud  and 
trying  to  pull  up  an  iron  nail  attached  to  the  top  of  a 
hillock,  is  found  on  the  volumes  of  1501,  1508,  1513, 
and  1515,  the  early  years  of  his  collection,  referring 
probably  to  some  event  in  his  life.  The  habit  of  having 
several  copies  of  a  work  was  no  doubt  for  the  use  of  his 
friends,  for  to  Marc  Lauwrin,  Maioli,  and  the  Presi- 
dent Chris,  de  Thou,  he  made  presents  of  books,  as  may 
be  seen  from  the  inscriptions  in  them,  and  Geoffroy 
Tory,  Pithou,  and  Claude  du  Puy  also  had  similar  gifts 
from  him.  Whether  Grolier  drew  out  his  own  designs, 
or  who  made  them,  is  not  known.  Geoffroy  Tory,  en- 
graver and  royal  printer  to  Francis  I.,  in  his  Champfleury, 
a  work  on  the  proportion  of  ancient  letters,  speaks  of 


42         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

some  which  Grolier  employed  him  to  design  in  a  way 
that  leads  one  to  think  they  may  have  been  those  that 
Grolier  used  on  his  bindings,  and  there  is  a  great 
similarity  between  some  of  the  Grolier  designs  and  the 
borders  that  surround  the  pages  of  the  Champfleury. 
To  Estienne  de  Laulne,  the  great  engraver  and  gold- 
smith, who  worked  with  him  on  the  new  coinage  for 
Henri  II.,  he  also  undoubtedly  owed  much. 

Grolier  is  credited  with  having  been  the  first  to  use 
morocco  as  it  is  now  dressed,  and  he  certainly  was  among 
the  first  to  use  lettering  pieces  on  the  backs  of  books,  a 
fashion  which  took  a  long  time  to  get  established.  He 
is  known  to  have  taken  much  trouble  in  getting  the  finest 
moroccos  from  the  Levant,  which  reached  him  through 
Jehan  Colombel,  a  merchant  at  Avignon. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  though  we  credit  the 

binder  with  the  artistic  decoration  of  books,  it  is  in  a 

sense  inaccurate  to  do  so  when  dealing  with  this  period. 

Commercial  During  the  whole  of  the  time  of  which  we  are  treating, 

bindings. 

the  stationer  was  the  binder ;  he  bound  the  whole  edition 
of  his  work,  which  he  was  then  prepared  to  sell  to  the 
public,  if  registered  as  a  bookseller.  It  is  usual  to  say 
that  the  printer  was  also  the  binder  at  this  time,  but  it 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.          43 

was  only  when  he  was  also  a  stationer  that  he  was  in  that 
capacity  likewise  a  binder.  In  the  i6th  century,  binding 
was  done  in  the  workshops  of  the  stationer-booksellers  ; 
in  the  iyth  it  was  still  undei  their  direction,  but  done 
outside  of  it  by  master  binders.  The  commercial  bind- 
ing of  the  earlier  periods  was  so  decorative  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  neglect  it,  though  it  differs  from  hand-work 
in  being  stamped  by  mechanical  pressure.  By  commer- 
cial bindings,  we  mean  those  issued  by  the  printer-binders 
and  decorated  by  stamps  on  which  the  ornament  was  cut 
entire.  Almost  all  was  probably  commercial  work  till  the 
time  of  Grolier.  Its  early  history  belongs,  of  course,  to 
the  history  of  blind  stamped  work,  but  it  soon  became 
connected  with  gold  ornament.  Some  of  the  stamps  on 
the  books  issued  by  these  printer-booksellers  are  of  con- 
siderable interest.  They  were  mostly  parlant,  that  is  to 
say  they  usually  contained  some  punning  allusion  to  the 
name  of  the  binder,  and  served  him  as  a  sign.  These 
matrix-stamps  were  cut  in  metal  similarly  to  those  used 
by  the  binder  in  his  capacity  of  printer. 

M.  Gruel,  who  has  made  many  researches  about  these 
printer-binders,  mentions  in  chronological  order,  as  the 
most  important,  Philippe  Pigouchet,  Denis  Roce,  Robert 


44         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Macd,  the  Gryphes  at  Lyons,  Christophe  Plantin  at 
Antwerp,  Jean  Bogard,  Madeleine  Bourselle,  widow  of 
Francois  Regnault,  Jacques  Dupuis,  the  Elzeviers,  &c. 
It  seems  to  be  a  disputed  point  whether  there  are  any 
books  extant  from  the  Aldine  Press  having  the  anchor 
stamped  on  the  original  cover.  M.  Gruel  states  that  he 
possesses  several  Elzeviers  having  the  well-known  mark 
of  that  Press  stamped  in  gold  on  the  binding  as  first 
issued.  The  Plantin  Museum  contains  one  specimen 
with  the  stamp  of  the  printer-binder,  and  the  metal  stamp 
is  likewise  to  be  found  among  the  printing  plant  carefully 
preserved.  This  sign  is  a  compass  describing  the  arc  of 
a  circle  and  the  motto  "  LABORE  ET  CONSTANTIA,"  and 
the  book  on  which  it  is  to  be  seen  is  a  duodecimo  bound 
in  calf,  entitled  Le  Livre  de  V Institution  Chr'etienne. 
The  brothers  Angelier,  printers  at  Paris  in  the  middle  of 
the  1 6th  century,  had  a  far  more  ornamental  sign  of  their 
Press.  It  was  a  framework  of  blind  lines  on  the  sides, 
with  solid  gold  corner  ornaments,  and  in  the  centre  the 
device  of  two  little  angels  kneeling  before  an  infant 
Christ,  who  in  His  right  hand  holds  the  cord  that  con- 
nects les  anges  lies,  and  in  His  left  the  globe.  Geoffrey 
Tory's  bindings  have  his  stamp  of  the  broken  pitcher, 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         45 
which  he  took  when  he  became  bookseller.     To  this  he  Geoffrey 

Tory 

added  later  the  wimble  or  auger.  This  first  was  adopted  1480-1533. 
by  Tory  after  the  death  of  his  little  daughter  in  1522. 
At  the  end  of  a  Latin  poem,  published  in  1524,  first 
appears  the  engraving  with  the  broken  pitcher,  and  the 
motto  "  NON  PLUS,"  which  he  henceforth  adopted  as  the 
sign  of  his  business,  instead  of  "  Civis."  In  the  Champ- 
fleury  he  explains  this  mark,  but  in  an  obscure  way,  and 
with  an  apparent  endeavour  to  connect  it  with  general 
affairs.  There  is  little  doubt  however  that  it  originated  in 
the  death  of  Agnes,  and  may  be  thus  interpreted  :  the 
broken  pitcher  is  her  career  cut  short,  the  book  with 
clasps  indicates  her  literary  studies,  which  he  superin- 
tended ;  the  little  winged  figure  her  soul,  and  the  motto 
"NoN  PLUS"  =  "Je  ne  tiens  plus  a  rien."  His  own  interpre- 
tation in  the  Champfleury  is  not  inconsistent  with  this,  and 
is  briefly  as  follows  : — The  broken  pitcher  is  our  body 
which  is  a  vessel  of  clay,  the  wimble  is  fate  which  pierces 
alike  both  strong  and  weak,  the  book  with  three  chains 
and  locks  signifies  that  after  death  our  body  is  sealed  by 
the  three  Fates,  the  flowers  in  the  pitcher  are  the  virtues 
we  possessed  in  life.  The  plain  broken  pitcher  alone  is 
found  on  the  binding  of  several  octavos ;  on  some  quartos 


46         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

we  get  the  broken  pitcher  traversed  by  the  wimble,  or 
toret  as  it  is  called  in  French.  This  was  probably  a 
punning  mark  on  his  name,  for  it  was  always  in  the  form 
of  a  T,  and  was  also  used  by  engravers.  There  are  three 
bindings  by  Tory  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale.  One, 
the  quarto,  has  the  wimble,  and  the  design  has  all  the 
appearance  of  having  been  painted  on  in  gold,  for  it  is 
very  free,  and  there  are  no  sunk  impressions  of  tooling. 
There  are  two  birds  at  the  top  among  the  scroll-work, 
and  it  is  throughout  exceedingly  fine.  There  is  a  Pe- 
trarch, 1525,  in  the  British  Museum  which  has  the  pitcher. 
Commercial  binding  about  1535  began  to  reproduce 
the  arabesque  ornament  and  interlacings  of  the  Renais- 
sance; many  such  stamped  covers  are  not  easy  to  dis- 
tinguish from  hand-work,  being  exact  imitations  of  the 
best  work  of  the  master  gilders,  the  dots  and  smaller  gold 
ornaments  being  added  by  hand  after  the  main  impres- 
sion had  been  given.  Marius  Michel  thinks  that  as 
many  as  80  per  cent,  of  the  French  and  Italian  bindings 
of  small  size,  dating  from  the  i6th  century,  were  orna- 
mented by  means  of  stamps.  During  the  first  half  of  the 
century  commercial  work  was  merely  a  reproduction  of 
hand-work.  The  Lyonnese  binders,  whose  reputation 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         47 
dates  from  the  early  i6th  century,  used  very  fine  stamps.  Lyons 

bindings. 

They  were  mostly  the  azured  corners  and  centre  pieces 
which  originated  in  Venice,  but  were  largely  used  in 
France.  The  rarest  of  these  Lyons  stamps  are  those 
in  imitation  of  certain  title-pages  of  the  time,  having 
caryatides  supporting  a  framework  with  allegorical 
figures.  It  was  during  the  last  half  of  the  i6th  century 
that  this  commercial  work  had  a  really  independent 
artistic  existence,  and,  consequently,  was  at  its  best.  A 
third  phase  of  the  stamped  work  is  seen  when  the  foliated 
centre  pieces,  originally  worked  leaf  by  leaf,  were  engraved 
as  a  whole  for  commercial  bindings — laurel  being  first 
used,  the  oak  and  palm  leaves  alternating  with  laurel  not 
coming  in  till  the  end  of  the  i6th  century.  Corners  were 
made  to  match  the  centres,  in  which  branches  appeared 
from  a  small  cartouche,  or  the  little  cherub  head  so  often 
used  by  Renaissance  sculptors. 

It  is  interesting  to  see  how  commercial  work  followed 
in  the  footsteps  of  artistic  binding  throughout  successive 
epochs,  reproducing  the  best  designs ;  and  later  on,  when 
the  art  became  decadent,  also  the  worst.  We  need  not 
follow  it  further,  now  that  the  fact  of  its  existence  has 
been  emphasised,  merely  drawing  attention  to  the 


48         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

circumstance  that  it  probably  had  indirect  advantages — 
first,  in  the  discontinuance  of  wooden  boards,  which 
could  not  support  the  pressure  necessary  to  the  stamp  ; 
and  next,  in  the  general  refinement  of  the  work,  cord 
being  substituted  for  the  strips  of  leather  on  which  books 
had  hitherto  for  the  most  part  been  sewn. 

During  the  Renaissance  the  artists  who  designed  for  the 
printer,  the  jeweller,  the  potter  and  the  craftsman  in  all 
the  minor  arts,  designed  also  the  book-covers  of  the  great 
collectors,  and  such  designs  were  carried  out  not  by  the 
printer-binders,  but  by  the  professional  doreurs  sur  cuir. 
It  was  their  business  to  gild  and  tool  all  leather  work, 
from  the  coffers  and  cases  for  jewels,  then  an  important 
business,  down  to  the  boots  worn  by  the  gallants,  which 
were  decorated  with  fine  arabesques  in  gold.  Through- 
out this  time,  then,  the  name  of  the  binder  does  not  give 
us  the  name  of  the  gilder,  though  such  work  was  probably 
carried  out  under  the  binder's  direction.  On  the  jewel 
boxes  above  mentioned  is  often  to  be  found  work  of  the 
same  character  as  on  contemporary  bindings  such  as  the 
interlacings  of  the  reign  of  Henri  II.,  the  small  pointed 
tooling  of  Le  Gascon,  and  the  lace-work  of  Derome. 
The  important  gilders  in  the  reign  of  Henri  II.  were 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         49 

Jehan  Foucault  and  Jehan  Louvet.  In  the  i  yth  century, 
when  the  edict  of  Louis  XIII.,  in  1618,  was  passed, 
making  booksellers  and  binders  reside  in  the  University  of 
St.  Yves  or  in  the  Palace,  and  forbidding  them  to  employ 
any  one  not  belonging  to  their  craft,  one  Pigorreau,  a 
boot  gilder  of  great  reputation,  endeavoured  to  get  him- 
self received  as  bookbinder,  for  fear  of  losing  his  employ- 
ment on  the  covers  of  books.  After  much  opposition  on 
the  part  of  the  craft,  he  succeeded,  and  we  read  in  a 
contemporary  document,  "  Henceforth  many  gilders, 
though  opposed  by  the  binders,  either  by  payment  of 
money  or  on  the  pretext  of  an  apprenticeship  to  binders, 
contrived  to  become  members  of  the  Bookbinders'  Com- 
pany. But  as  these  letters  of  freedom  have  always  borne 
the  threefold  description  of  bookseller,  printer,  and 
binder,  several  lawsuits  have  arisen  between  the  Company 
and  gilders  who  wished  to  be  received  into  it."  It  was 
not  till  1686  that  a  statute  was  passed  making  the  craft 
of  relieur-doreur  separate  from  that  of  libraire  im- 
primeur. 

It  is  impossible  to  discover  the  name  of  the  great 
designer  whose  work  may  be  traced  on  the  chief  bindings 
of  Francis  I.  and  Henri  II.,  or  of  the  great  gilder  who 

E 


50         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

carried   out  his   designs ;   and  this  obscurity  continues 
throughout  the  history  of  binding. 

Francis  i.  Many  of  the  books  bound  for  Francis  I.  were  Italian 
in  their  ornamentation,  in  'the  style  known  as  Grolier, 
except  that  the  arms  of  France  generally  take  the  place 
of  the  title  of  the  work  or  motto  of  the  treasurer,  which 
on  Grolier's  books  are  usually  found  in  the  centre  of  the 
sides.  The  emblem  of  Francis  I.  was  a  salamander 
amid  flames,  and  the  motto  "  NUTRISCO  ET  EXSTINGUO," 
also  the  letter  F.  with  the  fleur  de  lys.  The  emblem  and 
motto  were  given  him  in  his  childhood  by  his  tutor 
Boisy,  and  he  used  them  in  his  seal  throughout  his  reign. 
His  books  were  mostly  bound  in  black  leather,  excepting 
the  Greek  MSS.,  which  were  in  coloured  moroccos  with 
smooth  backs.  Few  books  from  his  library  are  to  be 
met  with  besides  the  ten  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale. 
Some  that  have  dolphins  show  that  the  book  was  bound 
in  the  reign  of  Francis  I.  but  for  the  Dauphin.  Only  two 
binders,  Philippe  Le  Noir  and  Estienne  Roffet — called 
Le  Faulcheur,  were  at  this  time  entitled  to  take  the  title 
of  relieurs  ordinaires  du  roi,  and  both  were  printers  and 
booksellers. 

During  the  reign  of  Henri  II.    binding   reached  its 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.          51 
highest  perfection,  and  yet  the  books  from  the  library  of  the  Henri  n., 

I547'I554- 

King  and  Diane  de  Poitiers  are  almost  the  only  fine  ones 
that  we  know  of.    Peace  had  given  place  to  war,  and,  the 
arts  being  neglected,  there  were  no  distinguished  collec- 
tors, the  King  alone  having  a  library  of  any  importance. 
Nevertheless,  the  best  of  the  books  bound  for  him  and 
his  mistress,  Diane  de  Poitiers,  are  the  best  known  of 
any  period,  bold  and  fine  in  design  and  unfettered  by 
any  tradition.     Their  main  characteristics  of  reserve  and 
simplicity  are  at  once  the  reason  of  their  excellence  and 
perhaps  the  explanation  of  the  subsequent  decline  of 
the  ornamentation  applied  to  book  decoration.    With  the 
exception  of  the  emblems,  no  engraved  tools  were  used  ; 
the   designs   were   entirely    composed    with   lines   and 
f       segments  of  circles,  which  in  combination  enabled  the 
great  designer,  whose  handiwork  can  be  traced  on  the 
best  bindings  of  those  reigns,  to  execute  in  a  triumph  of 
arabesque  both  flowing  tracery  and  an  infinite  variety 
5?bf  conventional    foliage.      As   to    what    brings   about 
S-ihe   degradation   of  ornament  there  will   always  be  a 
^difference  of   opinion,    and,  in   fact,   what    constitutes 
decadence    in   design   is    in   itself    an  obscure    point. 
>;Certainly   with   the   gradual    use   of  engraved    stamps 


52         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

freedom  and  simplicity  seemed  to  disappear,  but  it  would 
be  arbitrary  to  assume  that  the  engraved    "tool"   was 
necessarily  the  origin   of  the  deterioration   of  pattern. 
Perhaps  the  explanation  lies  in  the  fact  of  the  want  of 
restraint  shown  in  the  engraving  of  the  tools.     It  seemed 
such  an  easy  way  of  getting  effect,  that  they  were  soon 
made  too  composite;  they  were  made  to  contain  too 
much,  so  that  the  designs  achieved  by  their  aid,  instead  of 
growing  with  an  organic  growth,  if  the  expression  may 
be  permitted,  and  from  the  delicate  adjustment  of  small 
and  simple  component  parts,  were   gradually   planned 
more  and  more  with  a  view  to  using  these  stamps,  in 
which   the    elaboration   was   the    main   feature.      The 
Bibliotheque    Nationale    possesses   some   800   volumes 
which  must  have  constituted   nearly  the  whole  of  the 
library   of  Henri   II.      Most   of   the   books    have   his 
emblems  beside  the  arms  of  France  ;  either  his  monogram, 
with  that  of  his  Queen,  Catherine  de  Medicis,  the  two 
C's  of  the  Queen  being  interlaced  with  the  H  of  the 
King ;  or  his  monogram  with  that  of  Diane  de  Poitiers 
and  the  deer,  hound,  and  other  emblems  of  the  chase 
suggested  by  her  name.    The  ground  plan  of  the  designs 
continues   to   be  interlacings,   but  while  in   those  that 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         53 

Grolier  borrowed  from  Italy  there  is  a  predominance 
of  straight  lines,  those  done  for  Henri  II.  are  com- 
posed almost  entirely  of  curves.  There  are  two  styles 
in  the  designs :  those  having  only  interlacings  and 
curves  and  those  with  interlacings  and  azured  tools 
employed  in  the  central  ornament.  The  backs  are 
without  any  bands  instead  of  having  five  or  seven  as 
heretofore,  and  for  the  first  time  the  decoration  of  the 
back  is  brought  into  harmony  with  that  of  the  sides. 
He  also  had  some  imitation  cameo  bindings  done 
for  him. 

Both  Catherine  de  Medicis  and  Diane  de  Poitiers  had  Catherine 

M6dicis, 

important  libraries  of  their  own,  and  it  is  a  fact  that  has  1519-1589. 
often  misled  purchasers  of  these  books  that  to  the 
library  of  each  belonged  volumes  having  the  monogram 
of  the  other.  Catherine  brought  with  her  from  Italy  the 
art  traditions  of  her  family.  Her  dowry  to  Henri  II. 
comprised  some  MSS.  from  the  library  of  Lorenzo  de' 
Medicis,  and  when  the  Marshal  Pietro  Strozzi  was 
killed  at  the  siege  of  Thionville  in  1558,  she  annexed 
his  library,  pretending  that  she  intended  to  buy  it.  Her 
excuse,  as  narrated  by  Brantome  in  the  Vie  des  Capitaines 
Etrangers,  was  that  the  library  came  from  a  relative,  the 


54         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Marshal  having  acquired  it  after  the  death  of  the 
Cardinal  Ridolfi,  who  was  of  the  House  of  Medici. 
When  Catherine  took  possession  of  it  she  promised  to 
pay  the  Marshal's  son,  but  never  did  so.  More  than 
4,000  printed  books,  to  say  nothing  of  MSS.,  constituted 
her  private  library  at  Chenonceaux  in  Tourraine,  or  at 
the  Chateau  de  St.  Maur,  near  Paris,  according  to 
Hilarion  de  Coste,  which  was  enriched  by  costly  presents 
offered  in  exchange  for  her  patronage  of  letters.  On  her 
death,  in  1588,  her  creditors  obtained  leave  to  sequestrate 
her  property,  including  her  magnificent  library.  It  ap- 
pears to  have  remained  at  Paris  under  the  guardianship 
of  Benciveni,  Abbe  of  Bellevranche,  her  librarian.  In 
1594,  De  Thou,  who  had  recently  become  librarian  to 
the  King,  lost  no  time  in  pointing  out  to  Henri  IV.  that 
the  collection  should  revert  to  the  crown.  The  King  at 
once  issued  letters  patent  to  that  effect,  but  they  were 
not  put  in  execution  for  some  years.  They  had  to  be 
repeated  and  an  Act  of  Parliament  obtained.  Thus  it 
was  not  till  1599  that  Catherine's  library  was  incorporated 
with  that  of  the  Kings  of  France. 

In  1597  an  inventory  and  valuation  of  this  library  was 
made  by  M.  F.  Pithou,  many  interesting  extracts  from 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         55 

which  may  be  found  in  a  pamphlet  entitled  Notice  sur  la 
Bibliothkque  de  Catherine  de  Medicis,  by  M.  Leroux  de 
Lincy.  Unfortunately,  this  inventory  says  little  about 
the  binding.  We  know  that  Catherine  did  not  have 
bound  for  her  the  MSS.  of  the  Marshal  Strozzi,  as  Henri 
IV.  undertook  that  task,  devoting  to  it  the  revenue  of 
the  Jesuits  which  he  acquired  during  their  years  of  exile. 
But  that  she  employed  the  finest  artists  of  the  time  for 
her  bindings  is  an  undoubted  fact  from  the  examples 
we  know,  and  makes  it  the  more  unfortunate  that  the 
inventory  should  be  silent  on  the  matter.  A  great  part 
of  the  library  of  Catherine  is  still  in  the  Bibliotheque 
Nationale  ;  but  some  important  works  mentioned  in  the 
inventory  are  no  longer  there,  and  others  with  her  arms 
and  motto  are  to  be  found  in  public  and  private  libraries. 
•  M.  Bauchart,  in  his  Femmes  Bibliophiles  de  France^  says 
that  the  rarity  of  books  with  her  arms  is  accounted  for 
by  the  fact  that  when  they  were  united  to  the  King's 
library,  they  were  mostly  rebound  with  the  royal  arms  as 
a  sign  that  they  belonged  henceforth  to  the  crown,  but 
does  not  say  what  evidence  he  has  in  support  of  this. 
Among  the  most  interesting  of  the  books  from  her 
library  possessed  by  the  British  Museum  is  the  little  set 


56         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

in  three  volumes  of  the  works  of  Dionysius  the  Areopa- 
gite,  bequeathed  by  the  Rev.  C.  M.  Cracherode.  After 
Catherine  became  a  widow,  in  1559,  she  took  as  her 
emblem  a  heap  of  ashes  watered  by  tears  and  encircled 
by  a  scroll  containing  the  motto,  "  ARDOREM  EXTINCTA 
TESTANTUR  vivERE  FLAMMA,"  and  this  device  is  to  be 
found  on  her  later  bindings.  According  to  Hilarion  de 
Coste  (Eloges  sur  les  Vies  des  Reims,  des  Princesses  et 
des  Dames  illustres,  Paris,  1647),  she  had  also  a  broken 
lance  with  the  words,  "  LACRIMAE  HINC,  HINC  DOLOR." 
All  phases  of  design  may  be  traced  upon  her  books,  from 
the  Grolieresque  style  on  the  earliest  of  them,  with  straight 
interfacings  and  solid  Aldine  tools,  through  the  grand 
period  when  the  unknown  artist  who  worked  for  Henri 
II.  evidently  worked  also  for  her,  down  to  those  bound 
during  the  last  years  of  her  life,  with  the  floreated  ovals 
and  regular  interfacings  found  on  some  of  the  books  of 
Henri  III.  and  known  as  the  Eve  style. 
Diane  de  The  library  of  Diane  de  Poitiers  at  her  Chateau  d'Anet 

Poitiers, 

1499-1566.  was  hardly  less  celebrated.  She  appears  always  to  have 
had  a  taste  for  books,  for  in  1531,  as  the  widow  of  Louis 
de  Breze',  she  adopted  on  her  bindings  an  arrow, 
encircled  by  laurels  rising  from  a  tomb,  and  the  motto, 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         57 

"  SOLA  VIVIT  IN  ILLO."  Later,  as  the  mistress  of  the 
Due  d'Orleans,  afterwards  Henri  II.,  she  suppressed  the 
tomb  and  modified  the  motto  to  "  SOLA  VIVIT  IN  ILLA." 
Her  library  of  splendid  MSS.  on  vellum,  and  of  specimens 
of  printing,  was  superbly  bound,  and  frequently  enriched 
by  presents  from  the  King.  Most  of  them  have  her 
arms  as  Duchesse  de  Valentinois,  and  the  motto  above 
named,  with  her  emblems  of  the  chase,  and  occasionally 
the  significant  motto,  "  CONSEQUITUR  QUODCUMQUE 
PETIT."  Her  chateau  at  Anet  was  one  of  the  chefs 
d'tzuvrc  of  the  Renaissance,  a  palace  of  enchantment 
dedicated  to  the  cult  of  Diana.  It  was  built  by 
Philibert  Delorme  and  sculptured  by  Jean  Goujon ; 
Jean  Cousin  designed  the  stained-glass  windows ;  and 
Leonard  Limousin  and  Bernard  de  Palissy  vied  with 
each  other  in  its  decorations  of  enamel  and  pottery. 
After  the  King's  death  Diana  retired  to  Anet,  where 
she  died  and  was  buried  in  1566.  During  the  seven 
years  that  she  survived  the  King  she  constantly  added  to 
her  library,  which  remained  at  Anet  entirely  neglected 
till  1723,  when  it  was  put  up  to  auction  on  the  death  of 
the  Princesse  de  Conde',  to  whom  it  belonged. 

Much  controversy   has  arisen   about  the   monogram 


58         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

found  not  only  on  the  books  of  Henri  II,  but  in  the 
sculptured  work  of  the  chateau  at  Anet,  and  indeed 
on  most  of  the  art  monuments  of  his  reign.  Is  this 
monogram  to  be  interpreted  as  a  double  D.H.,  sig- 
nifying the  initials  of  the  King  and  his  mistress,  or  is  it 
an  H  and  a  C,  the  letters  of  Henri  and  Catherine  de 
Medicis  ? 

The  strongest  arguments  are  for  the  first  interpretation, 
though  M.  Paulin  Paris,  among  others,  supports  the 
latter  theory.  He  considers  that  Catherine  adopted  the 
symbol  of  the  crescent  as  her  own,  and  that  the  monogram 
is  hers. 

Against  this  we  have  to  put  the  following  facts  :  first, 
that  the  monogram  is  often  accompanied  by  the  symbols 
of  the  chase,  with  which  Catherine  could  hardly  have 
associated  herself;  secondly,  that  that  particular  mono- 
gram is  never  crowned  as  is  the  single  H  so  often  found 
in  juxtaposition ;  thirdly,  Catherine  had  a  distinct 
monogram  of  her  own  in  which  the  double  C  is  inter- 
laced with  the  H,  and  in  which  the  curves  of  the  C 
jut  out  beyond  the  H  in  such  a  way  as  to  leave  no 
doubt  about  the  letter ;  fourthly,  this  monogram,  in 
which  the  character  of  the  C  is  so  apparent,  is  the  only 
one  that  is  ever  found  crowned. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         59 
Marguerite   d'Angouleme,    sister  of  Francis    I.,   and  Marguerite 

d'Aiigou- 

Queen  of  Navarre,  had  some  fine  bindings,  the  general  'eme,  1492- 
plan  of  which  is  a  series  of  lozenge-shaped  compartments 
made   of    reversed    curves.      They    are    separated    by 
marguerites,  and  have  the  crowned  monogram   of  the 
Duchesse  d'Alengon,  or  Queen  of  Navarre. 

There  were   many  private   collectors   of  this   period  Private 

Collectors. 

whose  bindings  are  much  sought  after.     Marc  Lauwrin,  Marc  Lauw 

rin. 

of  Watervliet,  near  Bruges,  whose  books  bear  the  motto, 
"  LAURINI  ET  AMICORUM,"  and  sometimes  "  VIRTUS  IN 
ARDUO."  There  are  four  Lauwrins  in  the  Bibliotheque 
Nationale,  all  very  plain  and  in  black  leather,  with  the 
exception  of  one,  which  is  in  light  brown.  All  have  bands 
except  the  last,  and  all  have  the  name  in  a  cartouche 
on  the  front  side  and  the  motto  similarly  placed  on  the 
other.  Demetrio  Canevari,  physician  to  Urban  VIII.  Canevari. 
the  books  from  whose  library  are  easily  recognised  by 
their  fine  central  oval  stamp  of  Apollo  driving  his 
chariot  over  the  waves — Apollo  being  in  gold,  the  sea 
in  green  and  silver,  and  the  chariot  coloured.  The 
motto,  OP0O2  KAI  MH  AOEIQ2,  runs  round  the  stamp, 
which  is  often  enclosed  in  a  fine  border.  They  were 
probably  inherited  by  Demetrio,  as  they  were  mostly 


60         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

bound  in  Venice  between  1540  and  1560,  while  he  was 

not  born  until  1559.     This  library  was  in   existence  in 

the  Vico  Lucoli  in  Genoa  up  to   1823.     Peter  Ernest 

Charles        Comte  de  Mansfeldt,  the  celebrated  General  of  Charles 

Comte  de 

Mansfeldt,    y.,    had   a  fine    library.      His   son    Charles   had   also 
1595- 

decorative  bindings.     The  books  of  Charles  were  bound 

in  the  style  attributed  to  Nicolas  Eve,  and  had  his  arms 

and  monogram  of  two  C's  interlaced,  also  two  deltas  AA 

interlaced,  which  together  make  the  reversed  triangles,  so 

Anne  de       well   known   on   his   books.     The   constable   Anne  de 

Montmor- 

ency,  1493-    Montmorency  had  on  some  books   his  sword  entwined 
1567. 

with  a  sash,  and  the  motto,  AIIAANO5  ;   on  others  a 

golden  eagle  and  "  DIEU  AIDE  AU  PREMIER  BARON 
CHRETIEN."  Philippe  Desportes,  who  died  in  1606,  had 
the  double  <f><j>  on  the  backs  of  his  books. 

With  the  death  of  Henri  II.  the  great  traditions  of 
binding  are  suddenly  interrupted.  Four  different  gilders 
have  been  traced  at  work  on  the  chief  books  of  Francis 
I.  and  Henri  II.,  and  their  work  is  seen  no  more. 
Possibly  they  may  have  been  obliged  to  leave  the 
country  in  consequence  of  the  Huguenot  persecutions 
between  1562  and  1570. 

Of   Francis  II.   not  many  bindings  are   known.     Of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         61 

these  the  chief  decoration  is  either  a  dolphin  in  gold  Francis  n., 

1559-1560. 
with  plain  lines  on  the  side,  or,  after  his  ascent  to  the 

throne,  the  arms  of  France  with  his  monogram.  The 
work  of  the  great  gilder  to  Henri  II.  may  be  traced 
on  the  best  of  his  books  with  a  monogram  uniting  his 
initials  with  that  of  Mary  Stuart.  There  are  three  in 
the  Bibliotheque  Nationale  and  two  in  the  Bibliotheque 
de  1'Arsenal. 

Of  Charles  IX.  rather  more  bindings  are  extant.     Some  Charles  ix. 

1560-1574. 
of    those   bound   for   Francis    II.    have   the   additional 

initials  of  Charles  IX.,  suggesting  that  they  were  perhaps 
finished  in  his  reign.  They  are  mostly  distinguished 
by  two  C's  reversed  and  interwoven  sometimes  with  K, 
which  is  believed  to  be  the  initial  of  his  mother 
Catherine  de  Medicis.  The  letters  are  crowned,  and 
occasionally  constitute  a  semis.  The  arms  of  France 
are  in  the  centre,  with  or  without  two  pillars  united 
by  a  floating  scroll,  and  the  motto  "  PIETATE  ET 

JUST1TIA." 

There  now  arises  a  new  style  of  geometrical  inter- 
lacing quite  different  from  that  hitherto  prevalent,  having 
large  intermediate  spaces  left  unfilled  with  decoration, 
which  was  particularly  adopted  by  Henri  III.  This  was  a 


62         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Henri  in.,    period  of  emblems,  which   were   never  more   misused 
1579-1589. 

than  by  that  monarch.     He  instituted  the  Order  of  the 

Saint-Esprit,  the  symbol  of  which  often  appears  on  his 
books,  and  his  fanaticism  shows  itself  in  the  religious 
legends  and  devices,  such  as  the  Crucifixion  and  the 
Passion,  which  are  generally  to  be  found  on  works  bound 
for  him,  without  distinction  as  to  whether  they  are 
religious  or  profane.  These  occupy  the  centre  of  that 
geometrical  division  into  wide  compartments  above 
mentioned,  which  formed  the  basis  of  the  future  bindings 
of  Louis  XIII.  and  Louis  XIV.  when  they  were  filled  in 
by  the  small  tools  of  the  Eves  and  Le  Gascon.  The  backs 
are  nearly  always  plain,  with  a  compartment  at  the  top 
containing  the  title,  and  in  another  at  the  bottom,  "  SPES 
MEA  DEUS,"  or  "  MEMENTO  MORI."  The  intermediate 
space  has  in  an  oval  the  royal  arms  and  two  or  more 
quatrefoils,  usually  containing  a  Death's  Head — the 
emblem  of  the  Order  of  Penitents,  to  which  the  King 
belonged.  A  second  style,  besides  the  devotional  stamps 
before  mentioned,  has  frequently  a  semis  of  tears,  fleurs 
de  lys,  or  the  monogram  of  the  King  interlaced  with  two 
lambdas  AA  representing  Louise  de  Lorraine,  his  wife. 
The  British  Museum  possesses  a  very  fine  breviary  belong- 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         63 

ing  to  this  King  in  two  folio  volumes,  Paris,  1588.  In 
the  centre  of  the  front  cover  is  the  Crucifixion  and  on 
the  back  cover  the  Annunciation.  Each  cover  has  a 
double  set  of  corners,  and  the  field  is  powdered  with 
fleur  de  lys.  Henri  III.  extended  his  sumptuary  laws 
beyond  the  dress  of  the  bourgeois  and  nobility  to  the 
decoration  of  their  books.  The  titles  were  permitted  to 
be  in  gold,  the  edges  to  be  gilt,  and  lines  and  arabesques 
to  be  traced  in  gold,  but  all  massive  gold  stamps  were 
forbidden — a  decree  that  in  nowise  injured  the  progress 
of  the  art.  The  austere  character  of  the  bindings  done 
for  the  King's  own  use  did  not  however  suit  the  taste  of 
his  sister,  Marguerite  de  Valois,  and  a  new  mode  of 
decoration  arose,  with  which  is  particularly  associated 
the  names  of  the  Eves,  for  it  constitutes  their  second 
style,  and  which,  for  want  of  a  better  word,  may  be 
called  the  foliated  style.  The  Bibliotheque  Nationale 
possesses  bindings  of  Henri  III.  in  these  three  styles. 

To  Henri  IV. 's  reign  belongs  especially  the  fashion  of  Henri  iv. 

1589-1610. 
semis  of  monograms,  flowers,  and  small  tools.     Always  in 

existence  from  the  earliest  times,  they  were  most  popular 
in  the  i?th  century.  Another  mode  of  decoration 
that  also  prevailed,  and  which  marks  the  commencement 


64         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

of  the  foliated  period,  were  centres  composed  of  branches 
intertwined,  which  took  the  place  of  the  heavier  azured 
centres  that  had  hitherto  prevailed  in  most  of  the  simpler 
bindings.  Very  few  bindings  are  known  as  belonging 
to  Henri  IV.  besides  the  eleven  in  the  Bibliotheque 
Nationale,  and  those  that  exist  are  wanting  in  originality  ; 
they  are  marked  with  the  H.  crowned,  and  the  shields  of 
France  and  Navarre,  the  whole  being  surrounded  by  the 
collars  of  the  Orders  of  St.  Michel  and  the  St.  Esprit. 

In  other  parts  of  Europe  binding  was  far  behind  France 
during  the  i6th  century.  Germany  continued  and 
perfected  the  use  of  blind  stamped  leather  all  through 
the  period  that  Italy  was  developing  gold  tooling.  In 
England,  too,  that  mode  of  decoration  continued,  though 
not  so  late  as  in  Germany,  well  on  into  the  i6th  century. 
English  It  was  not  till  the  reign  of  Edward  VI.  that  gold 

binding  of 

the  i6th       tooling  became  usual  in  England,  most  of  the  leather 

century. 

binding,  in  Henry  VIII.'s  reign,  being  still  blind  tooled, 
though  with  exceptions.  The  Journal  of  the  British 
Archceological  Association,  1853,  vol.  VIII.  contains 
Berthelet's  bill,  as  King's  printer,  for  books  sold  and 
bound  and  for  statutes  and  proclamations  furnished  to 
the  Government  in  1541 — 1543.  From  the  items  put 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         65 

down  we  can  glean  something  of  the  nature  of  the 
binding  done  for  Henry  VIII.  :  "  Item  delyvered  to  the 
Kinges  hyghnes  the  vj  day  of  January  a  Psalter  in 
englische  and  latine  covered  with  crimoysyn  satyne,  25. 
Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes  for  a  little  Psalter, 
takyng  out  of  one  booke  and  settyng  in  an  other  in  the 
same  place,  and  for  gorgeous  binding  of  the  same  booke 
\\}d. ;  and  to  the  Goldesmythe  for  taking  off  the  claspes 
and  corner  and  for  setting  on  the  same  ageyne  xvj^/. 
Summa  2/4."  Then  we  have  such  phrases  as  "  bound 
after  the  facion  of  Venice,"  "  bound  after  the  Italian 
facion,"  "  bounde  after  the  Venecian  fascion,"  "  covered 
with  purple  velvit  and  written  abowte  with  golde." 

There  are  gilt  tooled  bindings  of  Henry  VIII.  in  the  Henry  vin. 

1509-1547. 
MS.   Department   of  the  British  Museum.      The  most 

important  is  a  folio  commentary  in  Latin  on  the 
campaign  of  the  Emperor  Charles  V.  against  the  French, 
A.D.  1544,  addressed  by  Anthonius  de  Musica  of  Antwerp 
to  the  King  of  England.  The  binding  is  in  dark  brown 
calf,  having  in  gold  an  oblong  in  the  centre  with  the  arms 
of  England  and  the  initials  H.R.  Above  this  panel  there 
is  a  tablet  with  "VERO  DEFENSORI  FIDEI,"  and  below 
another  tablet  with  "  ERRORUMQUE  PROFLIGATORI 

F 


66         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

OPTIMO  "  :  on  each  side  of  the  panel  are  two  medallions 
of  Plato  and  Dido.  The  whole  is  enclosed  within  a 
graceful  arabesque  border  surrounded  by  blind  lines, 
which  also  run  on  either  side  of  the  panel  and  round 
the  extreme  edge  of  the  book.  The  reverse  side  is  the 
same,  except  that  the  mottoes  are  "  MAXIMO  HENRICO 
OCTAVO  "  and  "  REG.  ANGLORUM,  FRANC.,  HIBERNICQUE, 
P,  M,  P,  P,  D,  G."  The  whole  binding  is  in  a  fine  state 
of  preservation  and  the  border  is  particularly  good,  made 
up,  as  borders  were  of  that  time,  by  the  repetition  of  a 
single  stamp  of  Venetian  design.  Another  binding  of 
Henry  VIII.  is  the  Liber  de  tribus  Hierarchiis,  by 
Gualterus  Delaenus,  an  octavo  in  brown  calf.  It  has  the 
arms  of  the  King,  and  beneath  a  rough  impression  of 
the  serpent  and  the  crucifixion  as  type  and  anti-type. 
These  are  all  set  in  a  geometrical  pattern  of  a  square 
interlaced  with  a  diamond,  the  remaining  spaces  being 
filled  up  with  heavy  tooling. 

There  are  also  two  volumes  in  precisely  similar  binding, 
though  containing  in  one  case  "  An  address  for  a  body 
of  Laws  to  be  made  in  Latin"  and  in  the  other  a 
treatise  " De  origine  Dominorum"  They  are  in  olive- 
green  morocco  very  rarely  found  on  any  English  books 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         67 

of  the  period,  and  the  size  is  a  small  quarto.  In  the 
centre  of  each  cover  are  the  arms  of  the  King  and  the 
letters  H.R.  set  in  a  diamond-shaped  framework  of  blind 
and  gold  lines.  This  is  again  enclosed  in  a  larger 
diamond,  broken  at  the  top,  bottom,  and  sides  by  a 
gouge.  The  whole  is  framed  in  a  square  of  gold  and 
blind  lines  with  corner  ornaments,  the  spaces  between 
that  and  the  diamond  being  filled  in  with  scroll-work 
and  flowering  cornucopia. 

The  Printed  Book  Department  has  several  English  gilt 
tooled  bindings  of  Henry  VIII.  One,  an  Antwerp  Bible 
in  two  folio  volumes,  is  very  similar  to  the  first  one 
described.  Both  volumes  have  mottos  from  the  Bible 
in  large  letters  set  in  bands  as  a  centre  panel.  On  the 
front  cover  of  Vol.  I.  is  "  AINSI  QUE  TOUS  MEURENT  PAR 
ADAM,"  and  on  the  back  cover  "Aussi  TOUS  SERONT 
VIVIFIES  PAR  CHRIST."  Vol.  II.  has  on  the  front  "LA 
LOY  A  EST£  DONNEE  PAR  MovsE,"  and  on  the  back  "  LA 

GRACE    ET    LA    VERIT&    EST    FAICTE    PAR    JESU    CHRIST." 

There  are  also  the  initials  of  Henry  and  Anne  and  a 
crowned  rose  at  the  top  and  at  the  bottom  of  the  panels, 
the  whole  being  enclosed  in  a  framework  of  a  double 
border  with  blind  and  gold  lines.  A  second  is  a  vellum 


68         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

printed  quarto  by  Berthelet,  entitled  Opus  exinrium  de 
vera  differentia  regies  potestatis  et  ecclesiastics.  Each  side 
has  a  panel  with  the  arms  of  the  King,  his  initials  and 
crowned  rose  in  the  centre  and  corners,  which  is  again 
enclosed  in  a  framework  of  four  heavy  corners  con- 
nected by  a  slight  border.  A  third  is  Elyot's  Image  of 
Governance,  also  a  quarto,  printed  by  Berthelet.  This 
is  in  white  leather,  and  the  design  is  entirely  Italian. 
Each  cover  has  the  royal  motto  "  DIEU  ET  MON  DROIT  " 
with  the  King's  initials  set  in  a  square  panel  of  arabesque 
ornament :  the  border  and  corners  are  similarly  of  Vene- 
tian pattern,  and  on  the  edges  of  the  leaves  painted  in 
gold  are  the  words  "  REX  IN  JETERNUM  VIVE." 

It  is  probable  from  the  nature  of  the  tooling  that  all 
the  bindings  above  described  were  of  English  work- 
manship, and  possible  that  those  printed  by  Berthelet 
were  also  bound  by  him ;  but  one  cannot  definitely 
assign  any  particular  work  to  him.  It  will  be  seen 
from  his  bill  that  he  bound  many  blank  books  for  the 
King;  but  Henry  VIII.  had  also  some  books  of  plain 
paper  made  abroad  for  him,  for  one,  a  large  folio  in 
black  leather,  containing  the  Privy  Purse  expenses  from 
1529-1532,  is  certainly  not  English  in  the  character  of  its 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         69 

ornament.  It  has  a  centre  diamond  ornament,  a  border 
made  by  a  very  fine  roll,  and  corners  formed  by  the 
border  roll  being  carried  across.  Another  of  foreign  make 
was  obviously  not  put  to  use  till  more  than  a  century 
and  a  half  later,  for  it  contains  a  list  of  works  in  the 
Royal  Library  about  1670-1680.  It  is  an  enormous 
folio,  made  of  Italian  paper,  and  having  parchment  end 
papers  emblazoned  with  the  royal  arms  and  insignia  of 
Henry  VIII.  It  is  very  solidly  made,  and  certain  parts 
have  ornamental  sewing  :  the  whole  is  both  blind  tooled 
and  stamped,  many  of  the  dies  looking  as  if  they  were 
made  for  the  whole  sides  of  small  books. 

Books  bound   for  Edward  VI.  are  more  numerous ;  Edward  vi. 

I547'i553- 

these  are  well  worth  study  in  the  British  Museum.  One  in 
the  MS.  Department,  Gualteri  Delceni  Commentarius, 
is  particularly  perfect  in  the  adaptation  of  the  design  to 
the  size  of  the  book,  which  is  a  duodecimo.  It  is  of  brown 
calf,  with  the  arms  of  the  King  and  the  badge  of  the 
daisy  in  gold  in  the  centre.  There  are  light  corners  of  a 
sort  of  floral  cornucopia,  and  the  whole  is  set  in  a  frame- 
work of  blind  and  gold  lines. 

There    is   likewise    a   small    quarto,   the    Travels  of 
Giosafat  Barbara,  of  Venice,  to  Tana  and  Persia,  trans- 


70         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

lated  by  William  Thomas  and  dedicated  to  Edward  VI. 
It  is  in  light  brown  calf,  having  some  scroll-work  in 
gold,  with  the  arms  of  'England  in  the  centre  within  a 
flamed  circle.  The  circle  as  well  as  a  surrounding  inter- 
laced oblong  and  diamond  and  an  outer  border  are 
coloured  black.  Books  bound  for  Edward  VI.  before 
he  was  King  have  the  feathers,  motto,  and  initials  E.P., 
afterwards  his  arms  and  initials  E.R.,  and  sometimes  a 
verse  from  Scripture.  There  is  an  octavo  in  the  MS. 
Department  done  for  him  a  year  before  he  came  to  the 
throne,  "Lists  of  cities  named  in  Trogus  Pompeius  and 
in  the  Epistles  of  Cicero"  addressed  by  Petrus  Auvarius 
to  Edward,  Prince  of  Wales,  A.D.  1546.  It  is  in  light 
brown  calf,  and  has  in  the  centre  a  panel  with  the  Prince 
of  Wales's  feathers,  motto,  and  initials  E.P.,  surrounded 
by  a  circle  of  flames  and  rays.  The  border  is  made  up 
by  the  repetition  of  an  arabesque  tool,  and  the  field  is 
filled  with  scrolls,  rosettes,  and  stars.  Three  blind  lines 
surround  the  gilt  tooled  panel,  and  three  are  placed  again 
at  the  edge  of  the  book. 

In  the  Printed  Book  Department  there  is  another, 
De  amplitudine  Misericordicz  Dei,  Andreasius,  Basilese 
1550,  which  has  the  arms  and  initials  of  Edward 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         71 

VI.  in  a  panel  of  gold,  and  blind  lines  with  corner 
tools. 

In  the  same  Department  there  is  the  only  one  to  be 
seen  with  a  Scriptural  verse;  La  Geografia  de  Claudia 
Ptolomeo,  Venetiis,  1548,  which  has  the  motto  "OMNIS 
POTESTAS  A  DEO  "  on  the  sides.  On  the  edges  of  the 
leaves  are  the  arms  of  Edward  VI.  painted  in  colours 
with  the  initials  E.  R.  in  gold.  Otherwise  the  binding 
is  quite  plain  but  for  a  bordering  gold  line. 

Perhaps  the  finest  binding  done  for  Edward  VI.  is  the 
Petri  Bembi  Cardinalis  Historia  Veneta,  Venetiis,  1551. 
The  design  is  a  very  good  interlaced  pattern  in  black, 
each  cover  bearing  the  arms  and  crowned  initials  of  the 
King.  In  a  circle  above  the  arms  is  the  royal  motto 
"  DIEU  ET  MON  DROYT,"  and  in  one  below  them  the 
date  MDLII.  English  binders  throughout  the  i6th 
century  reproduced  only  foreign  styles  on  their  leather 
work,  the  designs  of  which  were  often  very  good  but  the 
execution  far  behind  the  French  or  Italian  prototypes. 
They  were  very  fond  of  the  circle  as  ornament,  especially 
flamed,  and  its  use  may  be  noticed  as  a  differentiating 
characteristic  in  the  foreign  geometrical  types  that  they 
adopted. 


72         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

We  have  seen  this  ornament  on  two  Edward  VI. 
books,  and  it  is  more  frequent  on  those  bound  for 
Queen  Mary.  Berthelet  who  died  in  1556  probably 
bound  for  both. 

Mary,  There  are  three  books  belonging  to  Queen  Mary  in 

1553-1558- 

the  MS.  Department   of  the    British  Museum.     Myles 

Huggard's  poem  addressed  to  her  is  a  quarto  in  brown 
calf,  having  a  centre  ornament  of  her  arms  in  a  flamed 
circle,  and  the  letters  M.R.  at  the  top  and  the  bottom, 
and  one  gold  line  with  corner  ornaments  as  a  border 
to  the  whole. 

Another  is  a  Hora  bound  in  vellum.  It  has  her 
crown  and  arms  in  the  centre,  and  there  is  a  panel  of 
blind  lines  surrounding  it,  with  a  delicate  gold  orna- 
ment placed  at  intervals  within  them,  and  angle 
ornaments. 

Among  the  Printed  Books  are  to  be  seen  Bonner's 
Profitable  and  necessarye  doctryne,  1555.  The  arms  of 
the  Queen  are  again  seen  in  a  flamed  circle  set  in  a 
diamond  panel.  This  panel  is  enclosed  in  an  arabesque 
border,  the  field  being  filled  in  with  scroll-work.  There 
are  blind  lines  at  the  side  of  the  border  and  all  round 
the  edge  of  the  book. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         73 

Lastly,  the  Epitome  Operum  Divi  Augustini,  Colonise, 
1549.  This  is  a  very  fine  folio  in  brown  calf.  It  has  a 
centre  panel  of  a  diamond  interlaced  with  an  oblong, 
containing  the  arms  of  the  Queen  in  a  flamed  circle. 
There  is  a  broad  border  of  Venetian  pattern,  and  all  the 
spaces  between  that  and  the  panel  are  filled  up  with 
arabesques.  There  are  three  blind  lines  round  the 
outer  edge  and  an  extreme  bordering  line  of  gold. 

The  Black  Acts,  Edinburgh,  1556,  is  the  only  English 
binding  in  the  British  Museum  done  for  Mary  Queen 
of  Scots.  It  has  on  each  cover  her  arms  impressed  in 
gold  and  painted,  and  accompanied  by  the  words 
"  MARIA  REGINA  "  upon  two  scrolls,  the  whole  being 
enclosed  within  a  broad  gold  border. 

We  have  said  that  foreign  types  of  design  prevailed 
in  England  throughout  this  period.  Besides  the  inter- 
laced and  arabesque  work  described  in  many  of  the 
above-named  books,  enamelled  or  painted  mosaics  are  to 
be  found  similar  to  the  Italian  originals.  There  are 
seven  volumes  of  an  Aldine  Cicero  at  the  British  Museum 
in  this  style,  with  the  showy  arms  of  the  Heydon  family, 
to  whom  they  belonged — a  Talbot  passant  argent,  spotted 
sable. 


74         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Another  style  was  that  with  azured  corners  and  centre 
pieces  which,  originating  in  Venice,  became  firmly  es- 
tablished at  Lyons,  and  was  soon  introduced  into  this 
country. 

Most  of  these  styles  may  be  seen  on  the  bindings  of 
Queen  Elizabeth,  and  by  that  time  the  technique  had 
considerably  improved.  It  may  be  remarked  here  that 
though  we  speak  of  English  bindings  at  this  time,  it  is  a 
disputed  point  whether  much  of  the  work  was  not  done 
by  foreign  workmen.  The  evidence  however  is  in  favour 
of  its  being  English,  for  though  the  designs  are  often 
good  enough  for  French  work,  the  execution  and  the 
drawing  are  mostly  inferior. 

Elizabeth,         Many  of  the  bindings  belonging  to  Queen  Elizabeth 
1558-1603. 

were  very  fine.     Some  in  brown  calf  have  the  device 

of  a  crowned  falcon  holding  a  sceptre,  which  was  ori- 
ginally Anne  Boleyn's,  but  continued  by  her  daughter, 
and  others  are  in  vellum  elaborately  tooled. 

In  the  MS.  Department  of  the  British  Museum  is  a 
vellum-bound  quarto,  Aetonensis  Schola  Oratio  de 
adventu  R.  Elizabeta  ad  arces  Vindesorenses^  1563. 
It  is  a  fine  specimen  of  tooling,  with  her  arms  in  a  panel 
with  corners  and  a  border  of  arabesque. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        75 

There  are  also  several  embroidered  bindings  and 
others  decorated  with  enamel  or  silver  ornaments. 
Indeed  the  leather  bindings  done  for  Elizabeth  were 
not  numerous,  if  we  can  judge  from  the  few  that 
remain. 

Her  taste  seems  to  have  been  principally  for  a  more 
ornate  style,  if  we  can  judge  from  Paul  Hentzner's 
account  in  A  Journey  into  England  in  the  Year  1598. 
"  In  Whitehall  are  the  following  things  worthy  of  obser- 
vation. I.  The  Royal  Library  well  stored  with  Greek, 
Latin,  Italian,  and  French  books.  All  these  books  are 
bound  in  velvet  of  different  colours,  though  chiefly  red, 
with  clasps  of  gold  and  silver ;  some  have  pearls  and 
precious  stones  set  in  their  bindings." 

Corpus  College,  Cambridge,  has  some  books  with  a 
portrait  generally  said  to  be  that  of  Elizabeth. 

The  chief  private  collections  of  this  century  were  those  English 

collectors 

of: — Thomas  Wotton,  1521-1587,  called  the  English 
Grolier,  from  his  adopting  a  similar  style  and  motto 
to  that  of  the  French  collector ;  Archbishop  Cranmer ; 
Lord  Treasurer  Burghley ;  Robert  Dudley  Earl  of 
Leicester,  whose  books,  generally  marked  with  his  crest, 
the  bear  and  ragged  staff,  and  his  initials,  R.D.,  are  very 


76         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

fine  and  much  decorated ;  Archbishop  Parker ;  Henry 
Fitz  Alan  Earl  of  Arundel,  whose  emblem  was  the  white 
horse;  Lord  Lumley,  his  son-in-law,  who  died  in  1609, 
and  Sir  Robert  Bruce  Cotton.  Many  of  the  bindings 
done  for  Wotton  are  very  fine,  not  inferior  to  the  best 
Groliers.  There  are  three  in  the  British  Museum.  One, 
Cicero's  Questions  Tusculanes,  in  duodecimo,  Lyon,  1543, 
of  which  the  design  has  been  frequently  reproduced. 
Another,  the  finest  of  all,  the  Historia  Mundi  of  Plinius 
Secundus,  Lugduni,  1548,  is  a  folio,  also  in  brown  calf, 
having  at  the  top  and  bottom  of  each  cover  a  com- 
plicated interlaced  geometrical  pattern  in  black,  and 
between  them  a  square  scrolled  centre  with  his  arms. 
The  whole  is  one  of  the  finest  specimens  of  English 
binding  of  the  time. 

There  is  a  copy  in  a  very  poor  state,  the  Exposition  of 
Daniel  the  Prophcte,  in  duodecimo,  like  the  rest  in  brown 
calf,  having  at  the  top  of  the  front  cover  "THOM/E 
WOTTONI  ET  AMICORUM,"  in  the  centre  a  medallion  of 
a  man's  head,  and  beneath,  "1548":  on  the  reverse 
side,  at  the  top,  "  THE  EXPOSITION  OF  DANIEL,"  in  the 
centre  a  medallion  of  Lucretia  stabbing  herself,  and  at 
the  bottom  "  THOM^:  WOTTONI  ET  AMICORUM."  This 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         77 

came  from  Cambridge,  having  been  in  the  possession 
of  C.  Combe  :  and  a  similar  binding  is  still  there  with 
the  medallions  and  the  motto  of  Wotton. 

The  books  from  the  libraries  of  the  other  collectors 
mentioned  are  not  described,  because  they  are  all 
similar  in  design  to  the  various  work  done  for  the 
English  monarchs,  and,  like  those,  are  of  foreign 
character. 

Throughout  this  period  brown  calf  and  sheep  was  the 
leather  used,  morocco  not  occurring  even  in  the  Royal 
libraries  till  the  time  of  Elizabeth  or  James  I.  These, 
together  with  vellum  and  velvet,  formed,  with  very  rare 
exceptions,  the  material  in  which  all  books  were  bound. 


CHAPTER  II. 

French  bind-      THE  Eve  style  is  first  associated  with  the  library  of 

ing  during 

the  i7th       Marguerite  de   Valois,  the  third  daughter  of  Henri  II. 

century. 

and  Catherine  de  Medicis,  and  first  wife  of  Henri  IV., 

who  inherited  a  love  of  books  and  spent  much  time  and 

Marguerite    money  on  her  library.     The  small  floral  compartments 

de  Valois, 

1552-1615  centered  with  marguerites  that  diaper  her  volumes, 
mostly  bound  in  olive,  red,  and  citron  morocco,  are 
known  to  all.  Those  having  in  the  centre  of  one  side  a 
shield  with  three  fleurs  de  lys  on  a  fesse — and  on  the 
other  side  the  motto,  "EXPECTATA  NON  ELUDET," 
are  often  ascribed  to  her  library,  but  in  the  opinion  of 
M.  Guigard  were  most  probably  bound  for  Marie- 
Marguerite  de  Valois  de  Saint-Remy,  daughter  of  a 
natural  son  of  Henri  III.  Some  bindings  of  the  Eve 
character  were  done  for  Henri  IV.  before  he  came  to  the 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         79 

throne,  and  they  all  have  the  border  of  blended  palm 

and  laurel  foliage  in  the  Eve  style.     Marius  Michel  says  Antoinette 

deVendome. 

the  King's  aunt,  Antoinette  de  Vendome,  had  many  books 
bound  in  the  same  manner.  Her  initials  A.  and  V.  were 
entwined  in  the  centre  of  the  panel,  or  two  C.'s,  the 
initials  of  her  husband,  Claude  de  Lorraine,  and  in  the 
foliaged  ovals  the  two  AA  of  Lorraine  alternate  with  a 
flower. 

There  is  one  sign  often  to  be  found  on  the  bindings, 
ascribed  to  Marguerite  de  Valois,  and  on  other  books  of 
the  1 6th  and  early  iyth  century,  namely  the  S.  barre. 
Many  explanatory  theories  have  been  brought  forward 
about  it,  and  at  one  time  it  was  considered  to  be  the 
monogram  of  Gabrielle  D'Estrdes,  but  subsequently 
being  found  on  books  preceding  her  time,  it  has  been 
considered  to  signify  fermesse.  It  was  most  probably  a 
religious  symbol.  On  some  autograph  letters  of  Henri 
IV.  at  the  Bibliotheque  de  1' Arsenal,  it  may  be  seen 
placed  at  the  top  of  each  letter  and  also  at  the  end 
with  his  signature. 

The  Eves  were  a  family  of  binders  of  whom  the  first,  The  Eves 
Nicolas,  worked  for  Henri  III.  in  1579.     For  the  King 
he  bound  42  copies  of  the  Livre  des  Statuts  de  I  Ordre 


8o         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

du  Saint-Esprit,  the  order  founded  by  Henri  III.  His 
brother  Clovis  bound  for  Henri  IV.  and  Louis  XIII. 
Many  of  the  books  bear  his  name  on  the  title-page 
but  the  majority  are  unsigned.  In  the  elaborate  work 
associated  with  his  name  the  geometrical  lay-out  of 
the  designs  remains  as  before,  but  it  has  not  the  unity 
that  has  hitherto  characterised  similar  work,  for  the  parts 
are  separable  from  each  other.  The  originality  con- 
sists in  surrounding  the  compartments  with  scrolls  or 
spirals  and  branches  of  laurel  and  palm.  There  are  three 
distinct  styles  in  the  Eve  work ;  in  the  earliest  the  com- 
partments are  not  filled  in  at  all,  in  the  next  they  have 
the  small  azured  tools  of  the  Lyons  school ;  the  interlac- 
ings  are  much  richer,  the  branches  more  important,  and 
the  spirals  broken  up  with  small  azured  tailpieces ;  in  the 
latest  the  spirals  are  smaller  and  more  numerous,  palms 
alternate  with  laurel  and  oak  in  the  branches,  and  the 
compartments  are  filled  with  the  iyth  century  tools  to 
be  described  later.  The  name  of  Fanfare  was  given  to 
this  style  of  work  in  the  last  century,  when  Charles 
Nodier  had  a  volume  entitled  Les  Fanfares  et  Courvees 
abbadesques,  bound  for  him  in  this  manner  by 
Thouvenin,  and  ever  since  the  small  tools  employed  in 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         81 

it  have  gone  by  the  name  of  Fanfares.  There  were  no 
inside  borders  at  this  time. 

Jacques  Auguste  de  Thou  was  the  most  celebrated  De  Thou, 

1553-1617. 
patron  of  binding  during  the  last  part  of  the  i6th  century. 

Son  of  Christophe  de  Thou,  first  President  of  the  Parlia- 
ment of  Paris,  he  inherited  from  him  a  valuable  library, 
containing  several  books  bound  for  Grolier,  which  the 
latter  had  presented  to  Christophe,  in  gratitude  for 
having  saved  ~  his  life  and  honour.  Jacques  Auguste 
was  President  of  the  Parliament  under  Henri  IV.,  a 
position  his  son  held  after  him.  He  had  a  library  of 
8,000  volumes  bound  in  a  variety  of  styles.  It  included 
Fanfare  bindings  of  the  late  period,  in  which  the  spirals 
were  profuse  and  the  foliage  elaborate  and  delicate ;  the 
dotted  work  of  Le  Gascon  in  his  early  days ;  fawn- 
coloured  calf,  ornamented  with  plain  gold  lines ;  white 
vellum  stamped  with  arms ;  and,  most  numerous  of  all, 
books  covered  in  moroccos,  red,  olive,  and  citron,  per- 
fectly plain  except  for  his  fine  coats  of  arms.  These 
arms  vary  greatly  at  different  periods  of  his  life,  in  the 
following  succession.  Before  he  was  married  they  were 
simply  argent  with  a  chevron  sable  between  three  gad- 
flies of  the  same,  with  a  cherub's  head  as  his  crest  above 


82         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

the  escutcheon  and  his  name  below,  the  whole  enclosed 
between  two  branches  of  laurel.     Later,  he  added  his 
monogram,  I.A.D.T.,  and  this  and  the  arms  are  on  his 
books  up  to   1587,  when  he  married  Marie  Barbangon. 
After  this  he  impaled  his  wife's  arms,  gules  with  three 
lions  crowned  argent,  with  his  own,  and  modified  his 
monogram  to    I.A.M.     Marie   died   in    1601,    and  the 
following  year  De  Thou  married  Gasparde  de  la  Chastre. 
Henceforth  her  arms  replace  Marie's,  and  the  monogram 
becomes  I.A.G.     He  left  this  library  in  perpetuity  to  his 
family,  and  the  eldest  son,  Francois  Auguste,  librarian 
to  the  King,  guarded  it   till  he  was  beheaded  in  1642 
at   Lyons.     The  third  son   of  the   historian  was   then 
put  in   the  place  of    Frangois,  and  became   the  head 
of  the    family   and   the    owner   of   the   library,  which 
he    enriched   with    the   collection   of  his   father-in-law, 
Huges  Picardet.     His  books  are  known  by  the  combined 
arms  of  De  Thou  and  Picardet  until  1660,  when  he  was 
made  Baron  de  Meslay.     His  arms  are  henceforth  sur- 
mounted by  a  count's  coronet  instead  of  a  baron's,  and 
the   motto    "MANE   NOBISCUM  DOMINE."    Three  years 
after  his  death,  in   1677,  the  Abbe  de  Samer-aux-Bois 
sold  the  collection  to  meet  the  creditors  of  the  family. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         83 

Charron  de  Me'nars  bought  it  almost  intact,  except  some 
of  the  MSS.,  which  went  to  the  Royal  library.  In  1706, 
the  Marquis  de  Me'nars  resold  the  library  to  the  Bishop 
of  Strasburg  for  ^"40,000,  who  bequeathed  it  to  his 
nephew,  the  Prince  de  Soubise,  and  it  was  only  finally 
dispersed  in  1788.  By  far  the  greater  part  of  De  Thou's 
library  was  plainly  bound  in  rich  red  morocco  with  his 
arms — a  style  that  was  subsequently  much  copied  by 
collectors  in  all  countries. 

We  have  now  come  to  the  end  of  the  i6th  century, 
for  though  the  Eves  and  their  new  style  belong  to  the 
extreme  end  of  it,  their  most  characteristic  work  belongs 
to  the  1 7th.  It  remains  only  to  say  a  few  words  about 
binding  itself  at  the  period  we  have  reached  as  apart 
from  decoration.  Early  i6th  century  binding  is  mainly 
remarkable  for  its  solidity;  with  Henri  II.  the  work 
became  much  finer.  Bands  on  the  back  were  at  first 
very  numerous  and  heavy ;  later  on  they  were  discarded, 
and  the  ornament  of  the  back  was  then  brought  into 
relation  with  that  on  the  sides,  as  may  be  seen  in  the 
best  work  of  Francis  I.  and  Henri  II.,  though  this  was 
hardly  practised  regularly  till  1560.  It  is  the  custom  to 
consider  that  the  practice  of  sawing  across  the  backs  of 

G  2 


84         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

books,  to  embed  the  cord  on  which  the  leaves  are  sewn, 
did  not  originate  until  the  i8th  century,  but  it  is  evident 
from  the  plain  backs  of  this  time  that  something  of  the 
sort  took  place  as  far  back  as  the  middle  of  the  i6th 
century.  It  was  not  till  the  end  of  the  i6th  century 
that  the  leather  began  to  be  pared  before  covering — an 
important  step  in  the  direction  of  neatness  and  delicacy 
of  work.  Throughout  the  century  the  guards  and  lining 
papers  were  white,  and  sometimes  of  vellum  ;  the  edges 
of  the  books  were  profusely  ornamented  with  designs 
similar  in  character  to  the  sides,  and  carried  out  by 
means  of  matting  tools,  while  a  further  luxury  was  the 
marker  of  silk  or  ribbon,  often  ornamented  with  precious 
stones. 

Louis  xiii.,      The  books  of  Louis  XIII.  were  principally  decorated 
1610-1643. 

with  a  semis  of  fleurs  de  lys,  and  do  not  differ  much 

from  those  of  Henri  IV.  His  device  was  the  single  L. 
crowned,  often  used  in  the  semis  with  the  fleur  de  lys, 
and  these  were  occasionally  used  in  conjunction  with  the 
crowned  monogram  of  Queen  Anne  of  Austria,  two  A.'s 
interlaced,  one  of  which  is  reversed.  The  sides  were 
sometimes  bordered  with  the  branch  work  used  so  much 
in  the  preceding  reign.  Another  type  may  be  seen  in 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         85 

the  British  Museum,  consisting  of  a  framework  of  lines 
broken  at  the  top,  bottom,  and  sides  by  half  circles,  with 
angle  ornaments,  the  crowned  L.  and  the  crowned  A.'s. 

On  certain  of  these  books  there  is,  besides,  a  small 
centre  panel  containing  a  monogram  of  the  letters  H. 
and  D.  surrounded  by  the  S.  ferine*.  This  is  asserted  by 
Guigard  to  possibly  signify  that  they  originally  belonged  to 
Henri  IV.  and  Gabrielle  d'Estrdes,  passing  subsequently 
into  the  library  of  Louis  XIII.  But  this  explanation 
seems  more  ingenious  than  probable,  as  it  is  unlikely 
that  the  d'  of  d'Estre'es  would  be  given  as  the  prominent 
letter  of  the  name. 

In  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale  may  be  studied  three 
types  of  books  bound  for  Louis  XIII.  :  the  semis  of 
crowned  L.  and  fleurs  de  lys ;  the  semis  of  crowned 
XX  only ;  and  the  semis  of  crowned  fleurs  de  lys  only. 
His  use  of  the  crowned  XX  must  not  be  confounded 
with  the  lambda  used  by  Louise  de  Lorraine  and 
Henri  III.  His  binders  were  Clovis  Eve,  and  after  him 
Macd  Ruette,  who  worked  between  1606-1638,  and  is  Mac<£ 

Ruette. 

supposed  to  have  introduced  into  France  marbled  paper 
and  a  yellow  morocco  also  marbled. 

It  may  not  be  amiss  to  say  here  a  few  words  about 


86         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

marbled  paper,  the  origin  of  which  remains  obscure. 
Some  think  it  originally  came  from  Holland  as  wrapping 
for  Dutch  toys.  La  Caille  (Histoire  de  V  Imprimerie, 
Paris,  1689,  p.  2 1 3)  assigns  its  invention  to  Mace'  Ruette, 
1606-1638.  John  Kunckel  (Ars  Vitraria  Experimen- 
talis,  Dantzig,  1679,  ii.  xliii)  claims  it  for  Germany,  and 
also  describes  its  method  of  manufacture.  Lord  Bacon, 
again  (Sylva  Sylvarum,  Cent.  8,  No.  741),  calls  it  a 
Turkish  invention,  and  thus  describes  it : — "  The  Turks 
have  a  pretty  art  of  chamoletting  of  paper,  which  is  not 
with  us  in  use.  They  take  divers  oyled  colours  and  put 
them  severally  (in  drops)  upon  water ;  and  stirre  the 
water  lightly,  and  then  wet  their  paper  (being  of  some 
thicknesse)  with  it,  and  the  paper  will  be  waved,  and 
veined,  like  chamolet  or  marble."  In  the  Athenceum  of 
November  i6th,  1889,  there  appeared  an  account  of  an 
album  amicorum,  5^  in.  x  3f  in.  just  purchased  for  the 
South  Kensington  Art  Library,  containing  228  leaves,  of 
which  forty-six  are  of  marbled  paper,  comprising  no 
fewer  than  thirty-four  varieties.  This  book  belonged  to 
Wolffgang,  of  Vienna,  who  left  that  town  in  1616  for  Con- 
stantinople, where  he  remained  eight  years.  The  earliest 
entry  is  dated  May  i4th,  1616,  the  latest,  January  igth, 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         87 

1632.  "  Besides  the  forty-six  leaves  of  marbled  paper 
above  mentioned,  there  are  eighty  leaves  with  a  reserved 
space  for  writing  or  painting  on,  the  broad  border  being 
adorned  either  with  ornamental  panels,  similar  to  those 
on  Persian  bindings  of  the  i6th  century,  or  else  with 
floral  decoration  like  that  on  the  so-called  Rhodian  tiles 
and  plates."  The  writer  considers  that  "  marbled  paper 
in  its  varieties  was  therefore  most  probably  of  Turkish 
invention,  as  the  hitherto  known  examples,  French  or 
Dutch,  which  can  be  attributed  to  a  date  prior  to  1680 
are  all  of  one  class,  the  small  comb  variety." 

The  MS.  Department  of  the  British  Museum  con- 
tains 520  books  of  this  class.  The  fashion  of  having 
these  books  in  which  to  put  autographs,  coats  of 
arms,  drawings  or  any  record  of  personal  friends  was 
mainly  a  German  one,  and  prevailed  from  the  latter  part 
of  the  1 6th  century  to  the  end  of  the  i8th  century. 
Out  of  this  large  number  only  32  possess  any  leaves 
of  marbled  paper  at  all,  ranging  from  a  single  leaf 
to  as  many  as  139  in  one  book.  They  were  evidently 
inserted  as  a  curiosity,  and  as  they  were  bound  up  in  the 
book  when  it  was  made  for  the  owner,  it  is  obvious  that 
the  earliest  date  of  any  signature  contained  therein,  or  of 


88         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

the  binding,  if  it  is  a  dated  binding  as  many  are,  must 
be  taken  as  the  date  of  the  marbled  paper  contained  in  it. 

It  is  a  curious  fact  that  the  earliest  album  in  the 
British  Museum  containing  specimens  of  marbled  or 
patterned  paper  is  one  that  has  38  leaves  of  the  paper 
described  above  by  the  writer  in  the  Athenaum  as 
Eastern  in  character,  having  a  panel  pattern  or  floral 
decoration  faintly  shadowed  upon  it  in  a  transparent 
fashion.  The  entries  in  this  book  range  from  1586- 
1608. 

The  next  in  chronological  order  is 'in  a  contemporary 
binding  bearing  the  date  1599.  This  has  8  leaves  of 
marbled  paper  veined  and  blotched  both  sides  in  a  grey- 
blue  and  pink,  but  there  is  no  comb  pattern  among 
them. 

The  next  in  date,  1606-1614,  has  28  leaves  of 
marbled  paper,  all  grey-blue  vein  marble,  and  some  very 
faintly  and  delicately  done  like  the  Japanese  marbled 
paper  now  in  the  market.  But  the  most  important  one, 
as  far  as  the  number  and  variety  of  marbled  and  other 
coloured  papers  is  concerned,  is  a  Wisendisches  Denksbuch, 
1620-1640.  It  is  an  entry  book  of  the  births,  deaths,  &c., 
of  the  family  of  Francis  Wisendo  of  Wesenburg,  Secretary 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         89 

to  the  Aulic  Council,  1613-1660.  It  contains  139 
leaves  of  paper  marbled  both  sides,  over  twenty  leaves 
of  other  varieties,  some  sprinkled  with  gold  or  various 
colours,  others  plain  coloured  and  glazed,  and  also  three 
leaves  of  the  "shadowed"  paper  found  in  the  earliest 
dated  album,  but  without  the  Eastern  character.  From 
an  inspection  of  these  albums  containing  marbled  papers 
certain  conclusions  may  be  drawn,  though  it  is  possible 
that  at  any  time  some  discovery  may  be  made  that  will 
alter  them.  At  present,  however,  it  appears  that  the 
"  shadowed  "  papers — of  whatever  nationality  they  may 
be — are  earlier  than  any  of  the  marbled  papers,  and  that 
they  are  much  earlier  than  appears  from  the  South  Ken- 
sington album,  i.e.  1586  as  against  1616.  It  is  also 
evident  that  marbled  paper,  veined,  blotched,  and 
swirled  appeared  before  comb  marble,  which  was  in 
fact  a  more  mature  development  of  the  art,  and  that 
thus  the  statement  "that  all  known  examples  of  marbled 
paper  before  1680  are  of  the  small  comb  variety,"  is  not 
borne  out  by  an  inspection  of  the  albums  in  the  British 
Museum. 

Antoine  Ruette  succeeded   his   father   between  1640 
and   1650  as  Crown  binder,   and   did  some  fine  work 


90         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

for  Anne  of  Austria,  during  her  Regency,  and  for  the 
Private  Col-  Chancellor  Seguier.     The  motto  of  Se'guier  was  "  ARTE 

lectors. 

ET  MARTE,"  and  he  had  the  ornament  of  the  golden 
fleece  on  his  arms.  To  the  same  period  belong  also,  as 
collectors,  Mornay,  Philippede,  Dupuy,  La  Vrilliere, 
and  Richelieu.  Mornay's  books  have,  besides  his  arms, 
his  monogram  of  <f>  between  two  C.'s  facing  each  other, 
which  was  the  initial  of  his  wife  Charlotte  d'Arbaleste. 

The  brothers  Pierre  and  Jacques  Dupuy  had,  besides 
the  arms,  the  double  delta  arranged  as  a  star.  The 
Mare*chal  Balthazar  de  Villars  has  a  shield  with  his 
crest  and  the  motto  "FoRTis  FORTUNA  FORTIOR,"  and 
beneath,  the  letters  B.D.V.  Richelieu  had  his  arms 
with  the  episcopal  insignia  and  the  motto  "  His  FULTA 

MANEBUNT." 

It  is  impossible  to  describe  here  the  marks  of  owner- 
ship on  the  books  of  all  the  collectors,  who  henceforth 
became  more  and  more  numerous.  They  are  mostly 
coats  of  arms  and  crests,  a  knowledge  of  which  is  in  itself 
an  elaborate  and  difficult  study.  Those  whose  ambition 
it  is  to  be  able  at  once  to  assign  the  ownership  to  such 
books  must  take  as  their  guide,  for  French  bindings,  M. 
Guigard's  Armorial  du  Bibliophile. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         91 

Towards  the  end  of  the  last  century,  there  had  been  a 
growing  tendency  to  use  engraved  tools,  of  a  highly  com- 
plicated and  stereotyped  form,  which  increased  in  the 
present  time,  and  was,  as  before  remarked,  a  sign  of  the 
decadence  rather  than  of  the  growth  of  the  art.  Such 
were  the  little  vases  of  the  time  of  Henri  IV.,  which  were 
used  throughout  the  lyth  century,  and  by  the  imitators 
of  Le  Gascon.  Such  also  were  the  delicate  tools  copied 
from  the  designs  on  embroidery  and  lace  of  frequent  use 
throughout  the  time  of  Louis  XIII.,  and  which  were 
placed  at  the  angles  of  the  design,  and  also,  so  to  speak, 
cornered  the  centre  compositions.  Rolls,  too,  began  to 
be  used  at  the  extreme  end  of  the  i6th  century,  and 
gradually  developed  in  size  and  elaboration,  obviously 
thereby  helping  towards  the  mechanical  reproduction  of 
ornament. 

About  1625  there  appeared  a  new  development  of  the  Le  Gascon. 
Eve  style,  always  associated  with  the  name  of  Le  Gascon, 
though  no  documents  have  ever  confirmed  the  existence 
of  a  person  of  that  name.  Supposed  to  have  been  in 
the  workshop  of  the  Eves,  he  took  the  Fanfare  style,  with 
its  complicated  geometrical  framework,  as  the  basis  of 
his  designs,  but  worked  out  all  the  scrolls  in  fine  dots 


92         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

instead  of  solid  line.  His  work  is  the  extreme  of  reaction 
from  the  plain  Aldine  tools  of  the  early  Groliers.  Tools 
had  begun  to  get  finer  with  the  Eves,  but  with  Le 
Gascon  they  reached  the  height  of  delicacy  and  perfec- 
tion. In  his  later  styles  he  abandoned  any  solid  frame- 
work at  all,  and  made  up  his  designs  of  the  pointille 
ornament  alone,  which,  ceasing  to  be  an  accessory,  forms 
a  tracery  of  the  minutest  arabesque.  This  style  retained 
its  chief  place  until  1660,  when  it  gave  way  to  a  reaction 
in  favour  of  more  solid  work.  Pointille  or  Le  Gascon 
work  may  be  traced  distinctly  in  three  styles  :  in  the 
earliest  he  combined  on  a  simple  geometrical  basis  of 
solid  line  and  curve  the  finely-cut  centre  pieces  and  cor- 
ner tools,  which,  imitated  from  lace,  are  distinctive  of 
the  1 7th  century;  then  come  the  designs  with  the  same 
curve  and  line  ground  plan,  but  with  the  corners 
pointing  and  a  mass  of  the  same  tooling  round  the  cen- 
tre panel  of  line ;  and  finally,  those  in  which  the  whole 
background  of  the  design  is  worked  in  pointille,  leaving 
the  geometrical  interfacings  alone  plain.  Most  of  his 
work  was  done  on  a  red  morocco,  of  a  particular 
tone,  and  the  brilliancy  of  the  contrast  between  these 
plain  bands  and  the  mass  of  sparkling  arabesque,  has 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         93 

never  been  equalled.  The  mosaic  effect  on  work  of 
this  period  was  produced  by  the  design.  There  were 
no  mosaics  in  which  the  interlacings  were  inlaid  with 
leather.  Such  leather  inlays  as  these  were  always 
of  the  fonds  or  groundwork,  such  as  the  small 
shaped  pieces  to  be  seen  on  the  Florimond  Badier 
in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale,  a  picture  of  which 
may  be  found  in  M.  Gruel's  Manuel  Historique  et 
Bibliographique. 

Throughout  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  binding  continued  Louis  xiv. 

1643-1715. 
to  increase  in  quantity.  The  King's  binders  were  Antoine 

Ruette,   Florimond  Badier,  whose  splendid  signed  ex-  Florimond 

Badier. 

ample  of  the  Imitation  m  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale, 
just  alluded  to,  shows  that  he  possibly  did  many  of  the 
pointille  bindings  ascribed  universally  to  Le  Gascon. 
On  the  signed  binding  of  Badier,  above  mentioned,  there 
is  to  be  seen  the  little  head,  executed  in  small  dots,  that 
is  supposed  to  be  the  mark  of  Le  Gascon,  which  leads 
M.  Gruel  to  think  that  they  were  possibly  the  same 
person.  Nothing  is  known  of  Badier  except  that  his 
name  occurs  as  bookseller  in  the  catalogue  of  Lottin  in 
1645.  There  is  one  example  of  his  work  in  a  private 
collection  in  this  country,  but  it  is  much  inferior  to  the 


94         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

one  in  Paris.  To  Badier  is  assigned  the  first  important 
"Doubiures"  use  of  "  doublures,"  or  the  lining  of  the  inside  of  the 
boards  with  leather,  for  the  purpose  of  their  decoration. 
The  first  known  doublure  is  on  an  Italian  binding  of 
1550  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale ;  but  until  the  time  of 
Louis  XIV.  the  examples  are  very  rare,  so  that  the  usage 
was  then  first  established,  as  was  also  that  of  marbled 
paper,  instead  of  the  vellum  or  plain  white  hitherto 
employed. 

Le  Gascon  had  many  imitators  in  all  countries,  the 
Magnus.  best  of  whom  was  probably  Magnus  of  Amsterdam,  who 
bound  for  the  ElzeViers  and  for  Louis  XIV.,  but  the 
increasing  use  of  elaborately  engraved  rolls  and  of  com- 
plete stamps  for  the  interlacings  was  fatal  to  the  artistic 
character  of  their  work. 

To  the  end  of  the  century  belong  as  collectors  the 
Marquis  de  Louvois,  Fran9ois-Michel  Le  Tellier,  whose 
books  are  easily  recognised  by  the  three  lizards  in  his 
coat  of  arms,  and  Nicolas  Fouquet,  who  often  had 
a  squirrel  besides  his  initials  F.N.  The  College  of 
Jesuits  had  the  books  which  they  purchased  with  the 
money  given  to  them  by  him  for  the  extension  of  their 
library  bound  with  the  two  <£</>  interlaced,  and  this  inter- 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         95 

lacement  distinguishes  them  from  the  books   that   be- 
longed to  Desportes. 

The  last  part  of  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  witnessed  the  Decline  of 

French  bind- 

steady  decline  of  the  art  as  a  fine  art.     To  that  period  ing- 
belong  the  dentelle  borders,  made  up  of  the  i7th  century 
tools  inspired  from  the  motives  of  lace-work  often  very 
delicate   and  of  beautiful  execution   but   without    any 
qualities  of  design.     These  are  not  seldom  to  be  found  jansenist 

bindings. 

inside  the  Jansenist  bindings  of  the  time,  which  were 
entirely  plain  outside,  but  elaborately  decorated  within. 
The  name  is  taken  from  Cornelius  Jansen,  Bishop  of 
Ypres,  the  founder  of  an  ascetic  sect,  who  died  in  1638. 
Towards  the  end  of  the  i  yth  century,  indeed,  there  was 
comparatively  little  decoration  on  books,  but  the  binding 
itself  was  much  improved.  One  name  stands  out  promi- 
nently as  that  of  the  last  fine  binder  who  continued  the 
best  traditions  of  this  period.  Luc-Antoine  Boyet  was  L.  A.  Boyet. 
made  relieur  du  Roi  in  1698,  and  kept  that  post  for 
thirty-five  years,  till  his  death  in  1733,  when  he  was 
succeeded  by  Padeloup.  He  bound  for  Louis  XIV., 
the  Abbe'  Fle'chier,  the  Comte  d'Hoym,  Phe'lypeaux  de 
la  Vrilliere,  Maurepas,  Longepierre,  the  Marquise  de 
Chamillart,  and  Colbert,  whose  bindings,  plainly  marked 


96         HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

with  his  arms  and  his  device  of  the  serpent,  are  among 
the  best  of  the  time,  partly  on  acount  of  the  clause  in  his 
treaty  with  Turkey  which  entitled  him  to  a  choice  of  the 
best  morocco  skins.  Boyet  is  celebrated  for  his  fine 
doublures,  which,  if  he  did  not  introduce,  he  was  cer- 
tainly the  first  to  popularise.  The  style  of  his  work  was 
plain  gold  lines,  enclosing  the  back  and  sides,  with  or- 
namentation only  at  the  corners  and  along  the  edges 
connecting  the  corners,  such  ornamentation  being  still  of 
the  Le  Gascon  type — a  delicate  embroidery  of  curve  and 
dot  obtained  by  the  use  of  fers  pointill'es.  His  best 
work,  however,  belongs  to  the  next  century. 
English  Some  of  the  better  English  binding  was  done  for 

bindings  of 

the  i7th       James  I.     His  books  generally  have  heavy  corner  pieces 

century. 

and  centres  of  arms,  the  rest  of  the  side  being  diapered 
with  a  single  tool.  They  do  not  differ  from  the  French 
semis  in  character  except  that  the  thistle,  the  trident, 
and  other  English  symbols,  give  more  of  a  native 
appearance  to  the  work.  Two  specimens  of  this  work 
may  be  seen  in  the  MS.  Department  of  the  British 
Museum.  Francis  Thynne's  Plea  between  the  Advocate 
and  the  Antadvocate  concerning  the  Bath  and  Bachelor 
Knights,  dedicated  to  the  King,  and  dated  April  2,  1605, 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         97 

has  the  arms  of  the  King  in  the  centre,  massive  corners, 
and  is  powdered  with  fleurs  de  lys.  It  is  in  light  brown 
calf,  and  is  a  fine  piece  of  work.  The  other  is  a  folio, 
also  in  brown  calf,  and  similar  in  design,  the  Jewell  of 
Aries,  in  seven  books,  by  George  Waymouth,  dedicated 
to  James  I.,  and  a  presentation  copy  to  the  King.  The 
diaper  is  a  small  lion  rampant.  In  both  the  arms  are 
very  ornamental,  being  surrounded  by  a  festoon,  in  which 
the  emblems  of  the  falcon  and  sceptre,  the  feathers,  the 
fleur  de  lys,  the  portcullis  and  the  rose  are  all  displayed. 

A  collection  of  English  and  Italian  songs  with  music 
is  a  small  quarto  in  olive  morocco,  with  the  arms  of  the 
King,  heavy  corners,  and  a  diaper  of  the  mullet,  an  effec- 
tive tool  often  found  on  bindings  of  the  time.  It  is  seen 
on  another  binding  for  the  same  King  in  the  Printed 
Book  Department,  Abbot's  De  Gratia  et  Preseverantia 
Sanctorum,  Londini,  1618,  a  quarto  in  white  vellum. 

The  Museum  is  very  rich  in  books  bound  for  his 
elder  son,  Henry  Prince  of  Wales.  He  was  a  great  col- 
lector, like  his  tutor,  Lord  Lumley,  who,  no  doubt,  in- 
stilled into  him  his  love  of  books.  Lord  Lumley  pos- 
sessed many  books  from  the  library  of  Thomas  Cranmer, 
the  main  part  of  which  had  come  into  the  hands  of  Lord 


98        HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Arundel,  his  father-in-law.     On  the  death  of  Lord  Lum- 
ley,  in  1609,   the   Prince  bought   a  large   part  of  his 
library,  which  he  had  rebound  for  his  own,  and  so  it 
happened  that  the  Cranmer  books  became  part  of  the 
Royal  Collection  to  be  given  later  on  to  the  nation  by 
George  II.     Prince    Henry's   books   have  mostly  very 
large  and  bold  corner  stamps,  such   as   crowned  roses, 
crowned  lions,  or  fleurs  de  lys,   and  the  arms  in  the 
centre;  the  smaller  ones  have  azured  corners  and  the 
feathers  with  "!CH  DIEN"  and  "H.  P."  in  the  centre. 
Though  there  is  no  attempt  at  design  in  the  decoration, 
they  are  fine  in  their  striking  and  simple  effect.     Others, 
done  for  Charles  Prince  of  Wales,  afterwards  Charles  I., 
are  similar  in  character,  but  rather  lighter,  having  scroll- 
work  suggestive  of  the   Eve  influence,  and   his   arms, 
with  "C.P."     Many  of  Charles  II.'s  books  were  bound 
for  him  in  France  as   gifts,  but   some  of  the   English 
specimens    have    plain   panels  with    his    crown   cipher 
between  two  palm  branches ;  and  the  British  Museum, 
among  the  numerous  examples  it  possesses  of  MS.  books, 
has  a  fine  sample  of  the  cottage  ornament  done  for  him 
in  1669. 

The  Fan          A  great  many  bindings  of  this  century  have  the  fan- 
style. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.         99 

shaped  ornament  which  was  so  prevalent  in  Italy  during 
the  i  yth  century,  when  the  art  had  become  decadent  in 
that  country.  Made  up  of  very  small  tools  in  close  com- 
bination, which  form  a  crowded  central  circular  orna- 
ment in  the  middle  and  semi-circular  ones  at  the  corners, 
it  sometimes  has  a  rich  effect,  but  there  is  no  balance  in 
the  design,  the  tools  composing  it  being  all  minute,  and 
very  poor  in  character. 

We   must  not  omit  to  mention  a  Scotch  school  of  Scotch 

bindings. 

binding  that  did  some  very  good  work  at  the  end  of  the 
i7th  century,  and  disappeared  after  the  first  quarter 
of  the  1 8th.  The  leather  was  most  often  blue  and 
somewhat  over-elaborately  covered  with  small  leaves  and 
dots,  but  the  designs  are  ingenious.  Inferior  examples 
were  produced  down  to  1750. 

A  far  better  type,  and  the  one  most  distinctly  native  The  Cottage 
to  England,  though  also  used  about  1630  in  France, 
is  that  known  as  the  Cottage  style,  in  consequence  of  the 
lay-out  being  a  pent-like  arrangement  of  lines  at  top, 
bottom  and  sides.  In  this  type  the  spaces  are  filled  in, 
sometimes  with  the  French  sprays  and  branches  in 
combination  with  lace-work,  sometimes  with  the  small 
tools  used  in  the  fan  ornament ;  little  rings  and  scales- 

H  2 


ioo       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

work  are  also  very  frequent  in  the  filling  up  and  are 
particularly  characteristic  of  the  English  school.  With 
reference  to  this  work  it  may  be  noticed  that  English 
binding  suffered  greatly  from  the  inferiority  in  design 
of  the  tools  used ;  the  only  wonder  is  that  so  many 
of  the  bindings  look  so  well  as  they  do,  for  on  analysis 
of  the  designs  it  may  be  seen  with  what  poor  material 
they  were  composed.  The  art  of  combining  tools  to  pro- 
duce a  good  effect  was  also  of  the  most  elementary  kind, 
and  they  often  appear  to  be  thrown  on  almost  indiscrim- 
inately. Oxford  and  Cambridge  adopted  the  Cottage 
style  very  largely  in  the  books  they  printed,  which  were 
clothed  by  their  own  binders. 

The  chief  private  collectors  of  this  time  were  Bishop 
Cosin,  for  whom  Hugh  Hutchinson  bound,  the  Earl  of 
Oxford,  and  the  Lord  Chancellor  Clarendon  whose  binder 
was  Notts.  Sir  Kenelm  Digby  can  hardly  be  included,  as, 
when  exiled  to  France  after  the  execution  of  Charles  I., 
he  had  his  books  bound  there,  many  by  Le  Gascon  ; 
and  when  he  returned  to  England  at  the  Restoration,  he 
left  his  collection  in  France,  where,  on  his  death  in  1665, 
it  was  dispersed.  His  books  have  his  arms  and  those  of 
Venetia  Stanley,  his  wife. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        101 

Other  materials  besides  leather  were  largely  employed 
during  the  i6th  and  i;th  centuries.  Silk,  velvet  and 
embroidery  which  had  been  in  use  from  a  very  early 
period  were  extensively  used  for  royal  bindings  from  the 
time  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  and  throughout  the  Stuart  period, 
particularly  on  books  of  devotion.  Ornaments  from  the 
goldsmith  and  enameller  also  continued  to  overlay  bind- 
ings till  the  end  of  the  iyth  century.  The  tortoiseshell 
covers  edged  and  clasped  with  silver  which  are  a  special 
feature  of  the  late  iyth  century  are  probably  of  Dutch 
workmanship.  Specimens  of  these  may  be  seen  both  in 
the  British  Museum  and  at  South  Kensington. 

Embroidery,  indeed,  applied  to  this  use  was  almost  Embroidered 

bindings. 

exclusively  an  English  taste,  and  nowhere  are  such  fine 
specimens  of  needle-worked  bindings  to  be  found  as  in 
England  during  this  time.  Silks  of  exquisite  colours, 
gold  and  silver  thread,  bullions  and  pearls,  delicately 
and  intricately  woven,  combine  to  give  richness  of  colour 
and  splendour  of  effect.  The  British  Museum  possesses 
many  specimens,  and  the  University  Library  at  Cam- 
bridge has  two  velvet  bindings,  one  embroidered  and 
one  gold  tooled  which  cover  Bacon's  works,  and  were 
presented  by  the  author  to  the  Library. 


SANTA  BARBARA  STATE  COLLEOE  LIBRARY 


102       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

The  name  of  the  Ferrars  of  Little  Gidding,  must  not 
be  omitted  in  an  account  of  the  binding  of  this  time. 
The  life  of  Nicholas  Ferrar  has  been  written  several 
times,  and  for  many  years  the  exact  nature  of  the 
"  Protestant  Nunnery  "  as  it  was  called  of  Little  Gidding 
gave  rise  to  much  controversy. 

Born  in  1592  he  was  a  man  of  distinguished  piety  from 
his  earliest  childhood,  who  after  leaving  Cambridge 
travelled  for  about  five  years  in  Europe  for  the  sake 
of  his  health,  and  acquired  during  that  time  much  learn- 
ing of  very  varied  kinds. 

His  connection  with  the  Virginia  Company  is  a  very 
interesting  one,  but  it  must  suffice  to  say  here  that  on  his 
return  to  England  in  1619  he  was  employed  as  King's 
Counsel  to  conduct  its  affairs  when  threatened  by  the 
conspiracy  which  finally  overthrew  it.  He  remained  in 
the  position  of  Deputy  Governor  till  1624  when  it  was 
dissolved  by  the  king,  and  Ferrar,  whose  reputation 
all  over  the  country  had  become  very  great,  was  then 
elected  to  Parliament.  Here  however  he  remained  but 
a  short  time,  and  after  buying  the  lordships  of  Little 
Gidding  in  Huntingdonshire  he  carried  out  his  intention, 
conceived  many  years  back,  of  retiring  from  the  world 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       103 

and  leading  a  religious  life.  Thither  he  took  with  him 
his  mother,  his  brother  John,  his  sister  Mrs.  Collet,  and 
numerous  nephews  and  nieces.  At  Little  Gidding  the 
routine  was  ordered  mainly  with  a  view  to  a  religious 
life,  and  was  superintended  entirely  by  Nicholas  as  prin- 
cipal, but  what  is  of  interest  in  this  particular  connection 
is  that  it  was  conceived  in  no  narrow  spirit,  as  the 
following  extracts  show  : — 

"  And  for  the  variety  of  employments,  Nicholas  Ferrar 
entertained  a  bookbinder's  daughter  of  Cambridge  to 
learn  of  her  the  skill  and  art  of  bookbinding  and 
gilding,  and  grew  very  expert  at  it,  as  the  king,  having 
received  books  of  her  binding,  said  he  never  saw  the 
like  workmanship." — Life  of  N.  Ferrar,  by  his  brother 
John.  J.  E.  B.  Mayor's  edition,  Cambridge  1855. 

And  again: — "Some  therefore  spent  part  of  the  day 
in  perfecting  their  harmony  on  the  Scripture,  or  getting 
it  by  heart,  others  practising  their  singing  or  playing  on 
instrumental  music,  some  learning  to  write  fair  hands  or 
else  to  cipher,  some  of  them  exercising  their  humility 
and  diligence  in  gilding  and  binding  of  books,  for  he 
desired  every  one  that  would  should  be  taught  a  trade. 
Accordingly  he  entertained  a  Cambridge  bookbinder's 


io4       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

daughter  that  bound  rarely  to  show  them  that  piece  of 
skill."— Life  of  N.  Ferrar,  by  Dr.  Jebb.  J.  E.  B. 
Mayor's  edition,  Cambridge,  1855. 

It  was  no  doubt  for  the  binding  of  the  Harmonies  that 
the  craft  was  learnt,  and  a  brief  account  of  what  these 
were  may  be  interesting.  They  were  contrived  with  a 
view  to  bring  together  the  accounts  given  by  the  different 
evangelists  of  the  various  actions  or  doctrines  of  our 
Lord  in  such  a  manner  that  they  might  be  read  either  as 
one  connected  history,  or  as  related  by  any  one  writer. 
Capt.  J.  E.  Acland-Troyte  thus  describes  the  manner  of 
their  construction  in  a  paper  in  The  Library,  September, 
1890.  "  Fasting-printing  was  the  process  by  which  they 
were  produced.  Nicholas  Ferrar  set  apart  a  large  room 
for  this  purpose  and  here  he  spent  a  part  of  every  day 
directing  his  nieces,  the  Miss  Collets  and  the  Ferrars, 
how  they  were  to  arrange  the  verses  or  lines  so  as  to 
perfect  a  chapter  or  subject ;  the  Gospel  history  being 
divided  for  this  purpose  into  1 50  heads.  First  they  cut 
the  particular  passages  out  of  the  printed  copy  roughly, 
and  laid  them  in  their  places  on  large  sheets  of  strong 
paper,  and  when  the  subject  was  complete  each  piece 
was  neatly  fitted  to  the  next  belonging  to  it,  and  pasted 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        105 

evenly  and  smoothly  together,  and  kept  in  its  place  by 
the  help  of  a  rolling  press. 

Nearly  all  the  volumes  are  illustrated,  every  page 
being  embellished  with  one  or  more  engravings.  These 
pictures  were  collected  by  N.  Ferrar  in  his  travels  on  the 
Continent  and  during  the  years  1613 — 1618,  and  are 
doubtless  very  valuable,  as  it  is  stated  he  secured  the 
prints  of  the  best  masters  and  let  nothing  of  value  escape 
him." 

The  first  Harmony  was  no  doubt  intended  as  an  aid 
to  the  religious  instruction  of  the  community ;  but 
Charles  I.  having  known  Nicholas  from  his  active  public 
life,  heard  of  his  new  activities  and  borrowed  this  con- 
cordance for  his  inspection.  When  he  returned  it  some 
months  later  it  was  to  order  a  copy  for  his  own  use. 
This  order  was  carried  out  with  such  promptitude 
that  we  read  in  John  Ferrar's  life  of  his  brother, 
"Before  the  year  came  about,  such  diligence  and  ex- 
pedition was  used  that  a  book  was  presented  to  his 
majesty  being  bound  in  crimson  velvet  and  richly  gilded 
upon  the  velvet,  a  thing  not  usual."  King  Charles  then 
ordered  one  to  be  made  for  him  of  the  Kings  and 
Chronicles,  which  was  "  bound  curiously  in  purple  velvet, 


106       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

and  that  also  most  artificially  gilt  upon  the  velvet  in  an 
extraordinary  manner." 

There  is  no  doubt  that  this  patronage  of  the  king 
gave  a  sort  of  fashion  to  these  Harmonies,  and  that 
the  community  would  have  made  many  more  than 
they  did,  had  not  their  establishment  come  to  an  un- 
timely end. 

The  strictness  of  their  life  gave  rise  both  to  curiosity 
and  censure,  and  in  1647  or  1648  the  soldiers  of  the 
Parliamentary  party  plundered  the  house  and  church  and 
ruthlessly  destroyed  many  valuable  works,  the  family 
alone  saving  themselves  by  flight.  The  most  important 
point  to  us  is  to  discover  the  nature  of  the  bindings  done 
by  the  ladies  of  Little  Gidding.  It  has  been  the  custom  to 
assign  embroidered  covers  of  a  certain  type  to  them,  but 
there  are  no  grounds  whatever  for  this  opinion,  except 
that  we  know  they  decorated  their  church  with  needle- 
work. Without  doubt  one  special  type  of  their  binding 
is  mentioned  in  the  extracts  given  above,  i.e.  velvet 
gilt-tooled  or  stamped.  Captain  Acland-Troyte's  re- 
searches have  resulted  in  the  discovery  of  the  where- 
abouts of  eleven  of  the  Harmonies  which  are  fully 
described  in  the  Arcfueologia  of  1888,  and  of  these  six 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       107 

are  in  leather  gilt-tooled,  four  in  velvet  gilt-tooled  and 
one  in  red  parchment  with  the  four  corners  and  centres 
of  the  two  covers  ornamented  with  designs  in  open  work 
white  parchment  stuck  on  and  gilded. 

The  British  Museum  possesses  three  Harmonies,  two 
in  the  Printed  Book  Department,  and  one  in  the  MS. 
Department.  The  most  ornate  is  The  Harmony  of  Hie 
Four  Evangelists,  compiled  for  Charles  I.  It  is  a  large 
folio  in  blue  leather  tooled  all  over.  A  broad-banded 
diamond  panel  contains  a  circle  ornament  surrounded  by 
hearts,  a  segment  of  this  is  found  at  each  corner,  and  the 
whole  field  is  diapered  with  small  tools  and  larger  ones 
placed  at  intervals. 

The  other  in  the  Printed  Book  Department  is  also  a 
Harmony  of  the  four  Gospels  diapered  with  a  large 
azured  diamond,  the  spaces  between  being  filled  in  with 
a  small  tool.  This  style  is  met  with  on  other  books  of 
the  time  besides  the  Harmony.  There  were  three  ex- 
hibited in  the  Burlington  Club  in  1891.  In  the  MS. 
Department  is  The  Book  of  Kings  and  Chronicles.  The 
binding  is  comparatively  simple.  It  is  in  blue  leather 
like  the  others  tooled  all  round  with  gold  lines  at  inter- 
vals of  half  an  inch,  each  panel  having  an  ornament  at 


io8       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

the   angles.     All   these    books    were    presented   to   the 
Museum  by  George  II.  and  sent  direct  from  Windsor. 

It  may  be  observed  that  the  description  of  the  bind- 
ings given  by  John  Ferrar  does  not  accord  with  the 
bindings  themselves  so  far  as  we  can  compare  them  with 
those  of  the  extant  books.  The  explanation  may  be 
that  the  compiler  of  the  notes  published  by  Dr.  Mayor 
was  not  accurate  in  his  account.  The  life  is  not  a 
formally  written  work,  but  taken  from  Baker's  MSS. 
headed  Some  directions  for  collecting  materials  for  the  life 
of  Nicholas  Ferrar,  &c.  The  account  of  the  Harmonies 
was  probably  written  in  1653,  or  twenty  years  after  the 
books  had  left  Gidding,  so  that  a  mistake  in  assigning 
the  right  details  of  the  work  to  the  different  books  may 
be  excused,  especially  as  there  were  books  bound  in 
velvet  at  a  later  date. 

There  is  however  another  explanation,  and  that  is  that 
the  leather  bindings  had  loose  embroidered  covers  to 
which  the  descriptions  refer,  and  which  have  since  been 
lost. 

In  a  review  of  English  binding  up  to  this  time 
we  are  struck  by  the  fact  that  though  the  names  of 
certain  English  binders  are  known,  it  is  impossible  to 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        109 

connect  many  books  with  their  names,  when  we  come  to 
the  period  of  gilt  bindings.  Thomas  Berthelet  is  called 
printer  and  binder  to  Henry  VIII.  and  Edward  VI.,  but 
he  was  only  an  employer  of  workmen  for  covering  the 
books  he  printed.  John  Gibson,  of  Edinburgh,  was  the 
appointed  binder  to  James  VI.  when  King  of  Scotland 
in  1581.  Robert  Barker  and  John  Norton  were  his 
nominal  binders  after  his  succession  to  the  English 
throne,  though,  like  Berthelet,  they  were  only  employers. 
Samuel  Mearne  worked  for  Charles  II.  But  so  long 
as  no  bindings  can  be  identified  as  their  work,  their 
names  are  of  little  interest. 

In  the  1 7th  century,  then,  there  was  a  certain  amount 
of  good  binding  done  in  England  but  chiefly  in  imitation 
of  French  models.  The  Grolier  style  took  but  little 
hold  of  English  taste ;  the  semis  of  the  royal  Stuart 
bindings  lacked  the  finish  of  those  done  for  Henry  IV. 
and  Louis  XIII. ;  the  Eve  style  was  copied  with  least 
success  of  all,  but  the  plainer  De  Thou  or  Bourbon 
models  were  capable  of  more  satisfactory  reproduction, 
and  consequently  the  end  of  the  period  can  show  excel- 
lent examples  of  that  school. 

To    sum    up,  during   this   period    of  two    centuries, 


I  io       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

English  bindings  admit  of  the  following  classification  : 
(i)  Those  in  material  other  than  leather,  and  often 
decorated  with  enamels  and  gold  and  silver,  pierced  and 
engraved ;  (2)  Stamped  vellum  and  calf  bindings ;  (3) 
The  Venetian-Lyonese  work ;  (4)  Occasional  specimens 
of  French-Grolier  work,  very  frequent  ones  of  the  French 
semis,  and  some  very  good  imitations  of  Le  Gascon,  done 
between  1660  and  1720,  which  delicate  style,  curiously 
enough,  was  the  most  frequently  imitated  of  all  French 
work  :  (5)  The  cottage  ornamented  bindings — the  one 
distinctly  English  style  belonging  to  the  1 7th  century. 


CHAPTER  III 

WITH  the  1 8th  century  in  France,  both  binders  and  French  bind- 
ing of  the 
collectors  increased  prodigiously  in  number.      We  have  l8th  century 

said  that  the  best  of  Boyet's  work  comes  into  this  time ; 
he  was  followed  by  his  son  Etienne  Boyet,  Duseuil, 
Antoine  Michel  Padeloup,  Louis  Douceur,  Pierre 
Lemonnier,  Anguerrand,  the  Deromes,  and  Jean  Paul 
Dubuisson,  binder  to  the  Duke  of  Orleans.  Mosaics 
of  inlaid  leather  were  very  numerous  ;  those  of  Padeloup 
being  especially  important. 

We  have  no  longer  to  notice  any  royal  bindings,  kings 
had  ceased  to  lead  the  way  in  art  and  letters,  and 
binding,  like  other  things,  was  becoming  democratic. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  names  of  collectors  are  legion. 
Mdme.  de  Chamillart,  wife  of  the  finance  minister  of  Mdme.  de 

Chamillart, 

Louis    XIV.,    had    her    books    bound   by   Boyet   and  1657-1731. 
Padeloup,  with  her  arms  in  the  middle,  and  two  C.'s 


112       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

erre.  interlaced  in  the  corners.  The  Baron  de  Longepierre 
had  written  many  tragedies  none  of  which  had  met  with 
any  success,  until  the  Medea  brought  him  a  very 
temporary  renown.  He  signalised  his  triumph  by  using 
the  sign  of  the  golden  fleece  henceforth  on  all  the  books 
in  his  library.  The  Medea  has  been  long  since  forgotten, 
but  his  books  plainly  bound  with  the  fleece  at  the  four 
corners  and  occasionally  between  the  bands  at  the  back 
have  given  him  an  unexpected  reputation  and  one  which 
is  likely  to  be  permanent.  Numerous  bindings  with 
this  sign  are  in  the  market,  but  it  is  only  occasionally  that 
Comtesse  a  genuine  Longepierre  is  met  with.  The  Comtesse  de 

de  Verrue. 

1670-1736.  Verrue  had  many  of  her  books  quite  simply  bound  ; 
others  with  her  arms  and  the  name  Meudon,  where  she 
kept  her  library,  in  gold.  The  Count  d'Hoym,  Saxon 
Ambassador  at  Paris  to  Louis  XV.,  had  his  books 
stamped  with  his  arms.  The  Due  de  la  Valliere  had  an 
important  collection.  Much  sought  after  arevbooks  that 
have  in  a  decorative  oval  the  inscription  "Ex  Museo 
Girardot  de  Prefonds."  It  was  the  period,  too,  of  the 
femmes  bibliophiles:  every  woman  of  fashion  had  her 
library ;  the  daughters  of  Louis  XV.,  Marie  Adelaide, 
Victoire  and  Sophie  had  each  her  books  bound  in 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       113 

different  coloured  moroccos  :  red  for  the  elder,  olive 
and  citron  respectively  for  the  others.  Mdme.  de 
Pompadour's  books  numbered  nearly  4,000.  They  are 
distinguished  by  three  castles  in  her  arms ;  and  Mdme. 
du  Barry,  though  she  could  hardly  read,  made  a  point  of 
following  the  fashion  in  books,  and  had  hers  bound  with 
her  arms  and  the  motto  "  BOUTEZ  EN  AVANT."  Bisiaux's 
only  title  to  fame  is  that  of  being  her  binder. 

We  will  take  the  chief  binders  of  the  i8th  century  as 
they  succeed  each  other,  and  as  far  as  possible  give  some 
characteristics  of  their  style  and  work. 

Luc  Antoine  Boyet  worked  for  all  the  great  collectors,  L.  A.  Boyet, 

1680-1733. 
for  Flechier  and  Colbert,  for  the  Comte  d'Hoym  and 

Bellanger,  for  Longepierre  and  Madame  de  Chamillart. 
He  is  credited  with  having  first  instituted  the  doublures, 
but  Gruel  connects  the  name  of  Florimond  Badier  with 
this  innovation.  His  strong  point  lay  in  forwarding,  his 
mode  of  decoration  being  mostly  very  simple,  and  consist- 
ing principally  of  a  framework  of  lines,  the  angles  and  edges 
only  being  ornamented,  a  style  which  even  in  the  present 
day  forms  the  main  stock  in  trade  of  the  ordinary  binder. 

So  much  confusion  has  always  surrounded  the  name  DU  Seuii, 

1673-1796. 
of  Du  Seuil  that  it  may  be  useful  to  separate  as  far  as 


H4       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

possible  fiction  from  fact,  and  state  clearly  when  the 
fiction  arose,  and  what  the  facts  are  that  have  been 
recently  established  with  regard  to  the  existence  of  Du 
Seuil  and  his  period  of  work. 

The  style  always  spoken  of  as  the  "  genre  Du  Seuil " 
consists  of  a  double  framework  formed  by  a  delicate  three- 
lined  fillet  or  roll,  the  inner  frame  having  a  fleuron  at  the 
angles.  This  ornament  is  always  of  seventeenth-century 
character,  and  is  very  often  a  small  vase.  Books  bound 
thus  are  mostly  in  red  morocco,  and  some  have  a 
doublure  or  morocco  lining,  with  a  design  similar  to  that 
on  the  outside.  It  is  a  style  that  predominates  on  the 
bindings  of  the  seventeenth  century,  on  the  books  issued 
from  the  Elzevier  press,  and  on  the  works  that  composed 
the  less  ornamental  portion  of  the  libraries  of  Mazarin, 
Colbert,  Kenelm  Digby,  Count  d'Hoym,  and  others. 
It  is  impossible  that  Augustin  Du  Seuil,  born  about 
1673,  should  have  originated  a  style  that  prevailed 
between  1630  and  1680,  and  probably  constituted  the 
stock  pattern  of  the  majority  of  binders  of  that  time. 
Assuredly  the  name  of  the  originator  is  not  known,  nor 
is  it,  indeed,  likely  to  be  discovered,  considering  the 
dearth  of  signed  bindings  of  the  period. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       115 

How,   then,   arose  the  tradition  that   associates  the 
style  described  above  with  the  name  of  Du  Seuil,  and, 
moreover,  affixed,  to  that  name  the  qualification  of  Abbe'  ? 
The  name  was  apparently  first  heard  of  in  1724,  when 
the  library  of  Count  Lome'nie  de  Brienne  was  sold  in 
London  on  April  24,  1724,  by  James  Woodman.     This 
catalogue  may  be  seen  in  the  British  Museum,  and  the 
title-page  runs  thus  :  "A  Catalogue  of  the  Library  of  his 
Excellency  Louis  Henri  de  Lomenie,  Count  de  Brienne, 
Secretary  of  State  to  Louis  XIV.,  and  Ambassador  at 
Rome,  belonging  to  his  son  the  late  Bishop  of  Coutance 
in  Normandy."     London,  1724,  8vo.,  pp.  vii.,  143.     In 
the  preliminary  description  we  read  :  "  The  books  are  in 
very  fair  condition,  and  several  hundreds  of  them  have 
been  new  covered  in  morocco  by  Monsieur  1'Abbe  du 
Seuil,    and   the  collection  is  as  entire  as   it  first  came 
over ; "  and  throughout  the  list,  against  the  names  of 
certain  individual  books  is  to  be  found  "  Corio  turcico 
compactum,  per  Abbatem  du  Seuil ; "  or   if  the  book 
was   in   French,   "  Relid   en  maroquin,    par  PAbbe'  du 
Seuil ;  "  and  if  in  English,  "  Nicely  covered  in  morocco 
by  the  Abbd  du  Seuil."     The  sale  of  this  fine  library 
attracted  great  attention,  for  the  taste  for  French  bind- 

i  2 


n6       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

ings  had  developed  in  this  country,  and  according  to  the 
Memoires  inedits  Louis  Henri  de  Lomenie  Comte  de 
Brienne,  1828,  8vo.,  vol.  il,  p.  235,  it  had  cost  its  owner 
80,000  livres. 

These  entries,  then,  constitute  the  only  foundation  for 
the  tradition  that  there  was  sometime  an  ecclesiastic  who 
amused  himself  in  his  leisure  time  by  doing  elegant 
bindings,  and  that  such  bindings  were  in  the  style  already 
described.  M.  Gruel  says  that  he  has  minutely  searched 
the  three  volumes  of  the  Catalogue  de  la  bibliotJieque  de 
Lomenie  de  Drienne,  edited  with  great  care  by  Laire  and 
De  Bure,  and  that  he  has  found  none  of  the  above 
inscriptions,  so  that  either  they  were  not  on  the  books  at 
all,  or  if  they  were  they  escaped  the  notice  of  these 
editors.  If  we  adopt  the  latter  alternative,  the  recent 
suggestion  of  Mr.  Quaritch  may  be  considered.  It  is 
that  the  Count,  in  sending  his  books  to  sale,  mentioned 
that  certain  of  them  were  bound  by  A.  du  Seuil,  mean- 
ing Augustin  du  Seuil,  whose  reputation  was  then 
established,  and  that  the  compiler  of  the  catalogue 
expanded  "A,"  into  "Abbe?'  But  Louis  Henri  de 
Brienne  died  in  1698  ;  therefore  if  A.  du  Seuil  did  any 
work  for  him  it  must  have  been  as  a  young  man  of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        117 

twenty-five,  who  could  hardly  have  done  "  several 
hundreds"  of  books,  unless,  with  a  view  to  the  words 
"  new  covered,"  we  admit  the  possibility  of  a  portion  of 
the  library  having  been  dealt  with  by  A.  du  Seuil  after 
the  Count's  death,rand  while  still  in  the  hands  of  his  son, 
who  had  inherited  it.  In  view  of  these  facts  we  must 
pardon  the  Baron  Pichon,  who,  in  his  interesting  life  of  the 
Comte  d'Hoym,  vol.  i.,  p.  162,  indignantly  ascribes  the 
fable  of  the  Abbe  binder  to  the  imagination  of  the  English. 

Before  we  pass  from  this  imaginary  Abbd  to  the  real 
Augustin  du  Seuil,  we  must  note  the  astonishing  way 
in  which  the  tradition  has  been  adopted  in  France  as 
well  as  England.  Charles  Nodier  seems  to  have  been 
the  first  to  spread  it  in  France.  In  one  of  his  papers 
relating  to  books  and  binding  he  says,  "On  croit  que 
Du  Seuil  e'tait  un  eccle'siastique  de  Paris."  Fournier, 
in  his  L'art  de  la  reliure  en  France,  Parisj  1886,  p.  208, 
repeats  the  same  statement  on  Nodier's  authority,  and 
devotes  several  pages  to  a  discussion  of  the  habit  of 
priests  and  leisured  nobles  adopting  trades  as  a  pastime. 

With  us  the  story  has  been  adopted  with  more  excuse 
in  consequence  of  the  English  catalogue  of  the  Lome'nie 
sale.  Hannett,  in  his  History  of  the  Art  of  Book-Binding, 


ii8       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

London,  1843,  p.  193;  and  Edwards,  in  his  Memories 
of  Libraries,  vol.  ii.,  p.  977,  London,  1859,  as  well  as 
later  writers,  have  all  passed  on  the  fable.  It  is  time 
that  the  confusion  was  cleared  away,  and  that  book- 
sellers gave  up  describing  in  their  catalogues  all  books  of 
the  1 7th  century  decorated  with  rectangular  fillets  and 
corner  ornaments  as  "  in  the  style  of  Du  Seuil." 

We  will  now  pass  on  to  some  account  of  the  binder  to 
Louis  XV. — Augustin  du  Seuil.  The  following  biograph- 
ical details  are  found  in  Jal's  Dictionnaire  critique  de 
biographie  et  d'histoire^  8vo.,  Paris,  2nd  edition,  1872  : 
His  father,  Honord  du  Seuil,  was  a  Proven£al  shop- 
keeper in  a  village  of  the  province  of  Marseilles,  called 
Meusnes,  evidently  of  slight  importance,  since  the  name 
is  not  found  in  any  geographical  dictionary.  Honore 
married  Elizabeth  Billon,  and  their  son,  Auguste,  was  born 
about  1673.  It  ig  not  known  how  or  when  he  came 
to  Paris,  nor  what  master-binder  taught  him  his  trade  ; 
but  it  is  more  than  probable  that  he  served  his  appren- 
ticeship to  one  of  the  Padeloup  family,  for  on  Novem- 
ber 23,  1699,  he  married  Frangoise,  daughter  of  Philippe 
Padeloup,  aged  twenty-five  years  according  to  the 
marriage  register  of  St.  Severin.  By  her  he  had  seven 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       119 

children,  no  one  of  whom,  so  far  as  we  know,  followed 
in  his  father's  footsteps.  His  name  is  spelt  in  his 
signature  A.  Duseuil;  other  signatures  show  the  Seuil 
separated  from  the  article  by  a  capital  S.  Lesne  speaks 
of  him  as  Desseuil,  and  M.  Libri,  probably  misled  by 
Lesne',  in  the  catalogue  of  his  library  sold  in  London  in 
1859,  as  De  Seuil.  In  the  appointment  as  Court  binder 
his  name  is  spelt  as  De  Sueil,  but  at  that  time  ortho- 
graphy was  still  in  an  unsettled  state,  and  differences  in 
the  mode  of  spelling  Christian  names  are  frequently 
met  with.  It  is  probable  that  his  own  signature  above 
mentioned  shows  the  correct  way  of  writing  the  name. 

If  any  confirmation  is  wanted  of  the  reputation  of  Du 
Seuil  during  his  lifetime,  it  may  be  found  in  the  fact  of 
his  appointment  by  King  Louis  XV.  on  February  26, 
1717,  as  Court  binder,  without  waiting  for  any  vacancy 
to  take  place,  for  Louis  Du  Bois  already  held  the  post, 
and  did  not  die  till  February  15,  1728,  but  as  it  were  in 
anticipation. 

The  first  letters  patent  run  thus  : 

"BREVET  DE  RELIEUR  DU  ROY  POUR 
AUGUSTIN  DE  SUEIL." 


120       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

"  Aujourd'hui  26"  Fevrier  1717.  Le  Roy  estant  a 
Paris,  ayant  dgard  aux  tdmoignages  avantageux  qui  luy 
ont  estd  rendus  de  la  probitd  et  capacite"  d'Augustin  de 
Sueil,  Maistre  Relieur  a  Paris,  et  voulant  en  cette  con- 
side'ration  le  traitter  favorablement,  Sa  Majeste,  de  1'avis 
de  Monsieur  le  due  d'Orleans,  son  oncle  Regent,  a  retenu 
et  retient  ledit  de  Sueil  en  la  charge  de  1'un  de  ses 
Relieurs  ordinaires.  Pour  par  lui  en  faire  les  fonctions, 
en  jouir  et  user  aux  mesmes  honneurs,  prerogatives  et 
privileges  dont  jouissent  les  autres  Relieurs  de  Sa 
Majest^.  Et  pour  assurance  de  sa  Volonte,  Elle  m'a 
command^  d'expe'dier  aud.  de  Sueil  le  present  Brevet  qu' 
Elle  a  signd  de  sa  main,  et  fait  contresigner  par  Moy, 
Con"  Secretaire  d'Estat  et  de  ses  commandemens  et 
finances." 

After  the  death  of  Louis  Du  Bois,  eleven  years  later,  Du 
Sueil  succeeded  regularly  to  the  office,  as  is  shown  by  the 
second  brevet,  in  which  he  is  formally  installed,  and 
which  runs  as  follows. 

"  Aujourd'huy  15  FeVrier  1728.  Le  Roy  estant  a 
Versailles,  bien  inform^  de  la  capacite  d'Augustin  de 
Seuil  et  de  sa  fidelite'  et  affection  a  son  service,  sa 
rnajest^  1'a  retenu  et  retient  en  la  charge  de  1'un  des 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       121 

Relieurs  de  sa  Maison  vacante  par  le  de'ceds  de  Louis 
du  Bois,  dernier  possesseur  d'icelle ;  Pour  par  led.  de 
Seuil  1'avoir  et  exercer  en  jouir  et  user  aux  honneurs, 
autorite's,  privileges,  franchises,  liberty's,  gages,  droits, 
fruits,  profits,  revenus  et  emolumens  accoutume's  et  y 
appurtenant  vels  et  semblables  qu'en  a  jouy  ou  du  jouir 
led.  du  Bois  et  ce  tant  qu'il  plaira  a  Sa  Majeste",  laquelle 
pour  assurance  de  sa  Volontd  .  .  .  etc." 

He  thus  occupied  the  post  of  Court  binder  for  twenty- 
nine  years,  and  on  his  death  in  1746  was  succeeded  by 
Pierre  Anguerrand. 

We  know,  too,  that  together  with  Boyet  and  Padeloup 
he  did  the  Count  d'Hoym's  best  work,  for  in  the  daybook 
of  the  Count,  cited  by  the  Baron  Pichon,  there  is  an 
entry  of  ninety-six  livres  paid  to  him  for  binding  on 
August  24,  1725.  His  name  appears  likewise  in  the 
catalogue  of  the  Abbd  de  Rothelin,  and  in  that  of  M.  de 
Selle;  and  in  the  certificate  of  his  wife's  death  he  is 
described  as  "  Relieur  de  Monseigneur  et  de  Madame  la 
Duchesse  de  Berry." 

There  is  no  authentic  specimen  of  his  work,  so  that 
everything  concerning  his  style  is  mere  conjecture,  and 
we  do  not  know  whether  he  was  an  imitator  of  the  earlier 


122       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

masters,  or  whether  he  originated  a  style  of  his  own.  It 
is  most  probable,  though,  that  he  worked  after  the  fashion 
of  Boyet  and  Padeloup,  and  there  is  work  ascribed  to 
him  similar  in  character  to  the  former,  but  more  ornate, 
and  with  wide  dentelle  borders. 

M.  P.  Deschamps,  under  the  pseudonym  of  Jean  de 
Poche,  has  published  in  the  Miscellanies  Bibliographiques, 
Rouveyre,  1879  and  1880,  different  bills  of  binders, 
among  which  is  one  of  Du  Seuil.  It  contains  the 
detailed  account  of  sundry  bindings  supplied  in  1740 
to  M.  Anisson-Duperron,  director  of  the  Imprimerie 
Royale. 

It  is  a  curious  fact  that  the  name  of  Augustin  du  Seuil, 

though  he  occupied  the  post  of  royal  binder  for  so  many 

years,  has  not  been  met  with  in  any  book  of  statutes, 

annual,  or  registered  trade-list  of  the  time. 

Antoine  Padeloup,   called    Le    Teune,    succeeded    Boyet    as 

Michel 

Padeloup,     rcHeur  du  roL  and  was  one  of  a  family  that  furnished 
1685-1758.  J 

many  binders  in  this  century.  The  characteristics  of 
Padeloup,  whose  work  has  always  had  many  admirers,  is 
the  beauty  of  his  leather,  the  perfection  of  his  forwarding, 
and  the  taste  shown  in  his  decoration.  His  mosaics  must 
not  be  considered,  for,  though  greatly  admired  for  the 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       123 

brilliancy  of  their  colouring,  the  tile-like  design  of  their 
compartments  is  often  very  feeble.  Most  of  Padeloup's 
morocco  work  had  excellent  doublures,  of  which  the 
dentelle  borders  are  based  on  the  iyth  century  tools, 
which  were  gradually  becoming  heavier  in  style.  As  a 
binder,  Padeloup  was  rightly  celebrated.  He  worked 
for  Comte  d'Hoym,  Mdme.  de  Pompadour,  Bonnier  de 
la  Mosson,  and  the  chief  collectors  of  the  time,  and  was 

succeeded  as  relieur  du  roi  by  Louis  Douceur,  whose  Louis  Dou- 
ceur, 1737. 
work,  though  in  the  same  style,  is  heavier  and  somewhat 

clumsy.  Padeloup  was  the  first  who  employed  for  gold 
work  large  engraved  plates,  which  were  used  in  an  arm- 
ing press.  He  was  also  the  first  binder  who  used  an 
etiquette  with  his  name. 

Jean  Ch.  Henri  Lemonnier,  binder  to  the  Duke  of  J.  c.  H. 

Lemonnier, 

Orleans  in  1757,  was  one  of  a  large  family  of  binders.  X737- 
He  is  celebrated  for  his  elaborate  mosaics,  representing 
allegorical  scenes,  landscapes,  and  bouquets  of  flowers, 
which  are  rather  tours  de  force  than  successful  examples 
of  decorative  binding.  He  was  succeeded  by  Tessier. 
Frangois  la  Fert^  bound  for  Louis  XV.  and  for  La 
Valliere. 

The  Deromes  supplied  more  binders  to  this  period 


124       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

than  any  other  known  family.     Jacques  Antoine  was  the 

contemporary  of  Padeloup,  but  it  was  probably  his  son, 

N.  D.  De- Nicolas  Denis,  about  1761,  who  once  more  gave  to  the 

rome,    1761. 

art  the  distinction  of  a  new  style.  The  continuity  of  the 
traditions  of  Padeloup  in  his  work  may  be  due  to  his 
having  purchased  part  of  the  latter's  plant.  His  dentelles 
&  Foiseau  were  imitations  of  those  of  Padeloup,  who  first 
used  the  bird-tool,  which  is  much  finer  in  his  work  than 
in  the  imitations  of  Derome  le  Jeune.  He  also  did 
mosaics — a  taste  for  which  was  the  fashion  of  the  age — 
but  his  dentelles  are  what  made  his  reputation.  They 
are  distinguished  from  preceding  ones  by  not  being 
made  up  of  the  same  tools  in  repetition,  but  in  combina- 
tion, thus  affording  much  more  variety.  The  types  of 
his  tools,  which  were  lightly  shaded,  were  taken  from  the 
great  metal  workers  of  the  time,  and  may  be  seen  in  the 
balconies  and  staircases  of  the  houses  of  the  period. 
We  see  in  his  work  and  in  that  of  his  predecessors  how 
the  tools  employed  had  been  gradually  getting  thicker 
and  heavier,  until  in  those  of  Dubuisson,  who  had  the 
largest  collection  of  the  century,  they  are  distinctly  solid 
in  character.  What  constitutes  a  style,  says  Marius 
Michel,  is  the  repetition  of  the  same  ornamental  forms 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       125 

in  all  crafts  and  industries  of  a  period.  The  i8th  century 
style  was  a  distinct  one,  and  the  motives  of  the  Derome 
and  Dubuisson  dentelles  may  be  found  on  all  the 
pottery  and  tapestry  and  furniture  of  the  time. 

Jean  Paul  Dubuisson  was  engraver  painter  and  tool- j.  p.  Dubuis- 
son, 1726- 
cutter,  as  well  as  binder  and  gilder.     He  was   relieur  1759- 

du  rot  in  1758,  and  executed  large  and  massive  den- 
telles. 

Three  other  names  are  worthy  of  mention.  The 
family  of  Anguerrand  supplied  many  binders,  but  Pierre  Pierre 

TT     i  i   r         i       -»*-  •       i     Anguerrand, 

was  the  most  important.     He  bound  for  the  Marquis  de  1748-1777- 
Paulmy,  between  1770  and  1775. 

Jean  Pierre  Jubert  is  supposed  to  have  been  binder  to  j.  p.  jubert, 
Marie  Antoinette ;  he  is  known  chiefly  for  his  almanacks 
in  the  dentelle  style. 

Alexis  Pierre  Bradel,  nephew  and  successor  to  Derome,  A.  p.Bradei, 

1772-1809. 

worked  in  his  manner,  but  is  best  known  as  the  in- 
ventor of  a  temporary  mode  of  binding  for  valuable 
books  which  enabled  them  to  be  used  without  being 
forwarded. 

French  authorities  in  binding  state  that  with  Derome 
began  the  definite  deterioration  of  binding,  especially  in 
the  forwarding.  They  say  that  he  cut  down  not  only  the 


126       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

books  entrusted  to  him  of  his  own  time,  but  the  most 
valuable  works  of  the  past,  thereby  setting  a  fashion  of 
smooth  edges  which  lasted  until  Thouvenin,  who  was  the 
first  in  the  next  century  to  reform  forwarding  and  culti- 
vate a  taste  for  large  margins.  He  did  of  course  a  large 
amount  of  work,  and  this  may  be  true  of  a  part  of  it,  but 
it  is  certainly  not  true  of  a  great  deal  to  be  seen  in  this 
country.  Derome  introduced  the  use  of  hollow  backs, 
in  which  the  leather  is  not  put  directly  on  to  the  book. 
This,  together  with  the  deterioration  of  leather  that  took 
place  at  the  same  time,  caused  binding  during  the  last  fifty 
years  of  the  1 8th  century  to  reach  the  lowest  ebb  to  which 
the  art  was  ever  reduced.  The  above  names,  except  that 
of  Thouvenin,  who  belonged  to  the  Empire  and  the  time 
of  Louis  XVIII.,  are  the  last  that  appear  in  the  list  of 
French  binders,  before  their  craft  was  submerged  during 
the  time  of  the  Republic. 
Bindings  of  The  French  Revolution  was  fatal  to  all  forms  of 

theRepublic 

J793-  luxury  in  art,  and  the  bindings  of  the  time  have  nothing 

on  them  but  patriotic  or  revolutionary  emblems,  such  as 
the  phrygian  bonnet,  a  sheaf  of  spears  or  the  figure  of 
Liberty.  The  Carnavalet  Museum  has  an  interesting 
collection  of  the  tools  used  on  books  of  this  period. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        127 

We  shall  consider  the  restoration  of  French  work 
after  1820  in  a  few  remarks  dedicated  to  binding  in  this 
century. 

An  impetus  was  given  to  English  binding  about  1720  English 

binding  of 

by  the  patronage  of  Robert  Harley,  first  Earl  of  Oxford,  the  i8th 

'  century. 

who  founded  an  important  library,  which  was  continued 
by  his  son.  Eliot  and  Chapman  were  his  binders,  and 
their  style,  since  known  as  the  Harleian  style,  consisted  The  Har- 

leian  style, 

of  a  broad  tooled  border  with  centre  panels,  in  which  the  ra- 
pine-apple figures  as  a  prominent  tool.  The  leather 
used  on  the  Harleian  books  was  mostly  red,  but  was  very 
inferior  in  quality.  The  borders,  unlike  Derome's  Van 
Dyck  style,  were  always  straight  and  without  articulation, 
and  the  centre  ornament  was  generally  diamond  in 
shape.  The  tools  that  composed  both  borders  and  orna- 
ment were  small,  and  combined  without  much  grace  or 
skill. 

Thomas  Hollis  had  emblematic  tools  cut  for  him  by  Thomas 

Hollis. 

the  artist  Pingo,  which  he  used  on  the  works  to  which  he 
considered  them  suitable ;  the  caduceus  of  Mercury  is 
found  on  books  of  oratory,  the  wand  of  ^sculapius  on 
medical  books,  the  cap  of  liberty  on  patriotic  books,  the 
owl  on  works  of  philosophy,  and  the  pugio,  or  short 


128       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Roman  sword,  on  military  subjects.  He  left  his  name 
and  property  to  Thomas  Brand,  who  continued  this  style 
of  binding. 

French  At  the  end  of  the  century  the  French  emigrants  in- 

emigrant 
binders.        troduced  their  own  style.     Distinguished  amateurs,  who 

had  learnt  the  craft  as  an  amusement,  now  practised  it 
to  support  themselves,  and  the  names  of  the  Comte  de 
Caumont,  the  Comte  de  Clermont  de  Lodeve  and  the 
Vicomte  Gauthier  de  Bre'cy  appear  in  the  records  of  the 
time,  besides  that  of  Du  Lau,  the  friend  and  bookseller 
Roger  of  Chateaubriand.  There  succeeded  to  the  Harleian 

Payne,  b. 

1739,  d.  1797.  binders  Roger  Payne,  whose  name  is  associated  with  a 
particular  English  style.  Mr.  W.  L.  Andrews,  of  New 
York,  has  lately  collected  in  a  little  book  all  that  is 
known  of  the  life  of  this  binder,  and  it  is  from  the 
material  accumulated  by  his  careful  research  that  the 
following  facts  are  taken.  He  learned  his  craft  under 
Pote,  the  bookseller  to  Eton  College,  and  when  he  came 
to  London  was  first  in  the  service  of  Thomas  Osborne, 
a  dealer  in  book  rarities  in  Gray's  Inn.  He  is  then 
found  established  in  business  for  himself  by  the  kindness 
of  one  Tom  Payne,  whose  shop  at  the  Mews  Gate  was 
for  half  a  century,  between  1740  and  1790,  a  sort  of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        129 

literary  coffee  house  in  London.  The  portrait  that  we 
are  now  familiar  with  is  from  an  etching  done  at  the  ex- 
pense of  this  Tom  Payne.  In  his  later  years  Roger  took 
into  partnership  Richard  Weir,  whose  wife  is  always  known 
as  the  most  remarkable  of  book  menders  and  restorers. 
Many  of  the  books  in  the  famous  library  of  Count 
McCarthy,  at  Toulouse,  were  repaired  by  her,  as  were  also 
the  parchments  in  the  Record  Office  at  Edinburgh.  The 
partnership  of  Payne  and  Weir  was  however  of  brief 
duration  on  account  of  the  intemperance  of  both. 
Russia  leather  had  come  into  use  about  1730,  and  much 
of  Payne's  best  work  is  done  in  that,  the  rest  being  done 
in  straight  grain  morocco,  generally  dark  blue,  but  very 
often  of  a  bright  red.  His  tools  were  original  in  form, 
and  some  say  both  designed  and  engraved  by  himself. 
They  consisted  of  crescents,  stars,  running  vines  and 
leaves,  acorns,  and  circlets  of  gold.  These  were  placed 
at  intervals  in  the  spaces  to  be  decorated,  and  the  field 
studded  with  gold  dots.  He  was  the  first  English  binder 
who  endeavoured  to  make  his  ornaments  appropriate  to 
the  character  of  the  book  on  which  he  put  them,  and 
his  designs,  though  not  important  in  composition,  are  dis- 
tinctly original,  and  look  well  on  the  straight  grain 

K 


130       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

morocco  then  in  fashion.  His  backs  were  often  richly 
tooled,  while  the  sides  were  almost  plain  ;  and  when  the 
inside  joints  were  highly  decorated,  the  outside  was 
generally  very  simple.  Some  fine  Russia  work  is  partly 
blind  tooled  and  partly  gilt,  giving  an  effect  which  might 
well  find  more  imitators.  His  end  papers  were  nearly 
always  of  a  plain  colour,  and  that  colour  often  making  a 
most  inharmonious  contrast  to  the  outside  cover,  purple 
predominating.  As  a  forwarder  he  was  a  good  workman, 
and  the  elaborate  and  original  way  in  which  he  described 
in  his  bills  the  details  of  the  work  he  had  to  carry  out  on 
a  particular  book  have  made  them  famous.  He  bound  a 
great  deal  for  Earl  Spencer,  also  for  Dr.  Moseley — 
probably  in  exchange  for  medical  advice — and  for  the 
Duke  of  Northumberland.  He  did  every  part  of  the  work 
himself,  and  had  he  not  lived  in  intemperance  and 
poverty,  might  have  proved  himself  a  greater  artist  than 
he  did.  As  it  is  his  work  is  distinctive  and  most  unmis- 
takable in  style.  Kalthoeber  is  supposed  to  have  imitated 
his  plain  bindings,  but  few  attempted  his  ornament,  and 
thus,  though  his  bindings  are  all  unsigned,  they  are  rarely 
undetected  by  any  one  who  has  studied  his  manner. 
Charles  Lewis  made  the  best  imitations  of  his  ornamental 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       131 

work :  but  they  are  not  to  be  mistaken  by  a  practised 
eye.  He  died  in  a  little  room  in  Duke's  Court,  St. 
Martin's  Lane,  on  November  20,  1797. 

It  remains  only  to  say  a  few  words  about  binding  in  Modem 

binding. 

this  century,  both  French  and  English. 

To  the  earlier  part  of  the  time  belong  to  France, 
Bozerian  and  Thouvenin,  both  good  artists,  and 
Courteval,  Lefevre  and  Simier,  whose  work  was  not  in 
any  way  remarkable.  Up  to  the  end  of  the  last  century, 
skins  had  been  tanned  and  dyed  with  great  care ;  from 
the  first  years  of  the  Empire,  down  to  1840,  they  under- 
went quite  a  different  treatment,  greatly  deteriorating 
thereby;  sheepskin,  grained  to  imitate  morocco,  was 
even  used  instead  of  goatskin,  and  the  forwarding  was 
of  the  most  slovenly  description.  After  1830,  amateurs 
of  binding  came  to  the  front  again,  and  the  art  rapidly 
improved.  Purgold,  the  contemporary  of  Simier  and 
Thouvenin,  began  to  reform  the  forwarding,  and  from  his 
workshop  came  Bauzonnet,  to  be  known  later,  and  es- 
pecially in  conjunction  with  Trautz,  as  among  the  chief 
of  French  modern  binders  and  finishers.  It  was  Pur- 
gold  who  reintroduced  small  tools  in  combination,  instead 
of  blocks,  which  had  prevailed  for  some  time.  Purgold 

K  2 


132       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

bound  with  flat  backs,  Bauzonnet  rounded  his  books 
much  more,  while  Trautz  carried  the  rounding  to  excess, 
thereby  making  his  books  open  with  much  difficulty,  a 
fault  which  is  characteristic  of  the  majority  of  recent 
French  work,  excellent  as  it  otherwise  is  in  technique. 
When  Trautz  became  head  of  the  business  he  reserved 
the  finishing  to  himself,  leaving  the  forwarding  to  skilled 
men  under  his  superintendence.  Cuzin  was  one  of  his 
workmen,  and  Thibaron  worked  upon  his  traditions. 
Lortic,  a  rival  of  Trautz  and  Bauzonnet,  was  an  excellent 
binder,  and  more  original  than  the  former  in  his  designs. 
Nie'dre'e,  Duru  and  Cape,  contemporaries,  must  likewise 
be  mentioned,  and  Chambolle  who  succeeded  Duru. 
But  the  criticism  to  be  passed  on  modern  and  contem- 
porary French  binding,  which  is  perfect  in  technique 
and  has  attained  the  highest  point  of  finish,  is  that  it 
copies  slavishly  the  old  traditions  in  design,  and  shows 
not  the  slightest  tendency  towards  originality,  the  motifs 
of  the  work  being  chiefly  taken  from  the  last  century. 

In  England,  a  little  colony  of  Germans — Baumgarten, 
Benedict,  Walther,  Staggemeier  and  Kalthoeber — con- 
tinued the  traditions  of  Roger  Payne ;  though  it  was 
Charles  Hering  who  worked  chiefly  in  his  style.  Kal- 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       133 

thoeber's  work  has  nearly  always  a  star  or  circular  orna- 
ment on  the  back;  he  also  revived  the  practice  of 
paintings  on  the  edges  of  books,  underneath  the  gold,  a 
practice  carried  out  still  more  extensively  by  Edwards,  a 
binder  in  Halifax. 

Most  of  Edwards's  work  was  done  on  vellum,  and  in  Edwards  of 

Halifax. 

1785  he  took  out  a  patent  for  his  "  Invention  of  Embel- 
lishing books  bound  in  vellum  by  making  drawings  on 
the  vellum  which  are  not  liable  to  be  defaced  but  by 
destroying  the  vellum  itself."  He  thus  describes  the  said 
invention  :  "  Having  chosen  a  skin  with  a  firm  grain, 
take  off  with  a  sharp  knife  all  the  loose  spongy  part  of 
the  flesh,  then  soak  the  part  to  be  ornamented  with 
water,  in  which  a  small  quantity  of  pearl  ash  has 
been  dissolved,  till  it  is  thoroughly  wet,  afterwards  press 
it  very  hard,  when  it  becomes  transparent.  In  that 
state  it  may  be  drawn  upon,  beginning  with  the 
most  light  and  delicate  shapes,  afterwards  with  the 
stronger,  and  ending  with  the  coarsest,  because  a  rough 
outline  at  first  cannot  be  concealed  with  a  fine  finishing 
or  shading,  as  where  the  drawing  is  made  upon  the 
surface  which  is  looked  at.  When  it  is  made  a  finished 
drawing,  it  may  be  painted  with  strong  opaque  colours, 


134       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

but  in  this  case  the  shades  must  be  painted  first  and  the 
lights  afterwards.  Copper  plates  may  also  be  impressed 
so  as  to  have  a  similar  effect.  When  the  ornaments  are 
completed  it  must  be  lined  with  fine  wove  paper  put  on 
with  paste  made  of  the  best  flour,  and  is  then  ready  for 
covering  as  other  vellum  books."  On  reading  this  it 
does  not  perhaps  at  first  appear  that  this  style  of  decora- 
tion is  distinguished  from  others  by  its  being  underneath 
the  vellum — done  in  fact  from  behind. 

In  the  British  Museum  may  be  seen  the  Prayer  Book 
of  Queen  Charlotte  printed  at  the  Baskerville  Press  in 
1760,  and  elaborately  decorated  in  the  style  above 
described  by  Edwards  in  his  specification.  It  has  an 
Etruscan  border  in  blue  and  gold,  festoons  in  colours 
and  arms  in  the  centre,  while  the  fore-edge  is  painted 
underneath  the  gold  with  a  sacred  subject. 
Etruscan  John  Whitaker  initiated  the  style  termed  Etruscan,  in 

bindings. 

which  designs  from  the  decoration  of  Etruscan  vases  were 
copied  in  colours  by  means  of  acids  instead  of  in  gold. 
To  John  Mackinlay,  for  whom  Payne  worked  before 
his  death,  most  of  these  binders  owe  much  of  their 
excellence. 

Charles  Lewis,  in  conjunction  with  Staggemeier,  bound 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       135 

most  of  the  Althorp  books,  also  those  for  Mr.  Beckford, 
of  Fonthill.  Dibdin  was  a  great  admirer  of  his  work  at  a 
time  when  the  taste  for  books  made  his  own  writing  on  the 
subject  so  popular.  He  says  of  Lewis  that  "  he  united  the 
taste  of  Roger  Payne  with  a  freedom  of  forwarding  and 
squareness  of  finish  peculiar  to  himself."  Lewis  was 
assisted  by  Clarke,  famous  for  his  tree-marbled  calf,  in 
binding  the  library  of  the  Rev.  Theodore  Williams,  and 
Bedford,  the  best  of  all  English  binders  in  forwarding, 
did  much  important  work  for  the  late  Mr.  Huth. 

In  a  general  survey  of  binding  from  an  artistic  point 
of  view,  it  is  not  difficult  to  trace  the  phases  through 
which  it  passed,  nor  to  see  some  of  the  chief  reasons 
for  its  decadence.  We  have  emphasised  the  period 
at  which  it  attained  its  highest  artistic  point  as,  roughly 
speaking,  the  first  half  of  the  i6th  century,  but  this  is  solely 
from  the  point  of  view  of  design — the  technical  qualities 
being  without  any  of  the  finish  that  distinguishes 
later  work.  Many  think  the  Eve  and  Le  Gascon  period 
to  have  been  finer,  but  the  designs  of  those  masters  lack 
the  simplicity  and  dignity  that  distinguish  the  early 
work.  Ornamentation  is  too  profuse,  there  is  too  great  a 
multiplication  of  detail,  and  too  great  a  repetition  of  parts. 


136       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

It  will  be  observed,  too,  that  as  the  mechanical  aids 
to  the  art  grew  in  number,  taste  declined.  When  line 
and  circle  constituted  the  chief  elements  of  design,  there 
may  have  been  occasional  poverty  of  invention,  there 
was  rarely  error  in  taste  and  judgment.  With  the  advent 
of  the  tool  cutter  came  the  temptation  to  lavish  decora- 
tion without  regard  to  balance  of  parts  or  appropriate- 
ness of  design.  The  foliated  style  gave  ample  scope  for 
this  weakness,  and  much  of  the  work  of  the  Eve  school 
is  an  example  of  it.  It  is  a  relief  to  turn  to  the  Bourbon 
bindings,  which  may  have  been  a  reaction  from  the 
excessive  ornament,  with  their  fine  untouched  spaces  of 
leather  having  as  sole  decoration  the  coats  of  arms  of 
their  owners. 

When  highly  decorative  work  again  came  into  fashion, 
we  see  little  else  than  reproductions  of  the  great  models, 
with  often  an  extremely  injudicious  combination  of 
different  styles.  Padeloup,  in  France,  and  Payne,  in 
England,  are  the  only  binders  who  can  be  said  to  have 
originated  a  new  style. 

Binding  can  never  again  become  a  fine  art  unless  design 
goes  hand  in  hand  with  the  execution  which  now  leaves 
nothing  to  be  desired.  For  accomplished  craftsmanship  is 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        137 

only  admirable  when  it  interprets  happy  invention.  In 
all  departments  of  decorative  art  we  see  the  same  in- 
ability to  escape  from  the  traditions  of  the  past,  but  in 
none  has  there  been  such  servile  copying  of  the  old 
models  as  in  the  decoration  of  books. 


CONTEMPORANEOUS  SOVEREIGNS  IN  FRANCE 
AND  ENGLAND. 


FRANCE. 

ENGLAND. 

iSth  CENTURY. 

iSth  CENTURY. 

Charles  VII.  1422 
Louis  XI.    ...  1461 
Charles  VIII.  1483                               . 
.  Jeane.d.  of  Louis  XI. 
(  Anne,   Duchess  of 
Louis  XII.  ...  1498  {      Brittany 
Mary,   d.   of  Henry 

Henry  V  1413 
Henry  VI.     ...  1422 
Edward  IV.  ...  1461 
Edward  V.    ...  1483 
Richard  III. 
„          .„.                /Elizabeth,       d.       of 
Henry  VII    ...  1485  j    Edward     IV. 

v     VII.  of  England 

i6th  CENTURY. 

i6th  CENTURY. 

/Claude,   d.  of  Louis 
Francis  I.    ...  1515!      XII. 
I  Eleanor  of  Austria 
Henri  II.     ...  1547     Catherine  de  Medici 
.   TT                 (Mary  Stuart,  Queen 
FrancisII.  ...  I559J     of  Scotland 

.....          ,     (  Regency  of  Catherine 
Charles  IX  ..   1^60   {        F  m*  JB   • 

(Catherine  of  Aragon 
Anne  Boleyn 
Jane  Seymour 
Anne  of  Cleves 
Catherine  Howard 
Catherine  Parr 
Edward  VI.  ...  1547 
Mary  1553  Philip  of  Spain 

•  0°"  ^     de  Medici 
Henri  III.  ...  1574    Louise    de     Vaude- 

Elizabeth  1558 

mont,  called  Louise 

de  Lorraine 

1  Marguerite  de  Valois, 

Henri  IV.   ...  1589!      d.  of  Henry  II. 

1.  Marie  de  Medici 

i7th  CENTURY. 

i7th  CENTURY. 

{Anne  of  Austria,  d.  of 
Philip       III.      of 

James  1  1603  Anne  of  Denmark 
Charles  1  1625  Henrietta  of  France 

Spain 
T      •    VTXT        c      f  Maria  Theresa,  d.  of 
Louis  XIV...  1643  (     phiHp  IV  of  Spain 

Commonwealth  1649 
_,      .      TT            ,,   (Catherine     of     Bra- 
Charles  II.    ...  i66o|    ganza 

Philippe    d'Orleans,  grandson    of    Louis 
XIII.,  Regent,  1715-1723. 

(Anne  Hyde 
James  II  i68s<  Maria    Beatrice 

V    d'Este 

William      and 

Mary  1689 

William  III....  1694 

i8th  CENTURY. 

iSth  CENTURY. 

T      .    VTT                  (  Mary   Leczynska  of 
Louis  XV.  ...   1715  \      p  i     j 

.                                  (Prince     George      of 

Louis  XVI...   1774  |      Austria"'0 

Anne  1702-^     Denmark 
(Sophia  Dorothea   of 
George  I  I7i4|    fell 

Louis  XVII.    1793    Never  reigned 

George  II.    ...  1727  Caroline  of  Anspach 

Republic  I...    1793-1799- 

TTT             f.  /Sophia   Charlotte    of 
George  III.  ...  i7MM£,klenb  urK.Strelitz 

TECHNICAL   TERMS. 


BLIND  TOOLING 
DENTELLE  BORDER. 
DOUBLURE     .    .    . 
END  PAPERS  .     .    . 

FINISHING     .    .    . 
FORWARDING     .    . 

GAUFR£  EDGES  .    . 

GOUGE  

PETITS  FERS      .    . 

POINTILLE     .    .     . 
ROLLS 


SEMIS  .  .  . 
SQUARES  .  . 
TOOLS  . 


Impressions  of  the  finisher's  tools  without 
gold. 

A  border,  resembling  lace  work,  finished 
with  finely-cut  tools. 

When  the  inside  of  the  cover  is  lined  with 
leather  it  is  called  a  doublure. 

The  papers  placed  at  each  end  of  the 
volume  and  pasted  down  upon  the 
boards. 

All  ornamentation  in  blind  or  gold  by  means 
of  tools  used  in  combination. 

All  processes  through  which  a  book  passes 
after  sewing  other  than  those  of  orna- 
mentation by  means  of  tools  or  rolls. 

Impressions  made  with  the  finisher's  tools 
on  the  edges  of  the  book  after  gilding. 

A  finishing  tool  forming  the  segment  of  a 
circle. 

Small  hand  tools  used  in  finishing  as  distin- 
guished from  the  stamps  or  blocks 
worked  in  a  press. 

The  dotted  style  of  Le  Gascon. 

Wheels  of  brass,  cut  to  any  pattern,  for 
impressing  the  gold  leaf  on  the  leather. 

A  diaper  design,  made  up  of  the  repetition 
of  one  or  more  small  tools. 

The  portions  of  the  boards  that  project 
beyond  the  edge  of  the  book. 

Brass  stamps  used  for  impressing  the  gold 
leaf  on  the  leather. 


APPENDIX  I. 

EMBROIDERED   BOOK-COVERS. 

THE  subject  of  embroidered  book-covers  is  but  a  very 
small  part  of  the  far  larger  and  more  generally  interesting 
one  of  embroidery  itself. 

The  history  of  the  rise  and  fall  of  embroidery  is  as 
interesting  as  the  rise  and  fall  of  other  arts.  During 
the  Middle  Ages  it  was  as  seriously  pursued  as  any 
of  the  higher  ones  that  at  various  times  and  in  various 
places  have  been  prosecuted  throughout  the  ages.  It  had 
its  archaic  stages,  its  season  of  fruition  in  complete 
perfection,  and  finally  its  period  of  as  complete  debase- 
ment. 

No  one  has  been  able  to  trace  its  origin ;  one  might 
indeed  say  with  truth  that,  like  certain  other  arts,  it  has 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        141 

the  distinction  of  having  its  beginning  shrouded  in 
antiquity.  The  Old  Testament,  and  especially  Ezekiel, 
is  full  of  passages  showing  the  skill  of  the  Jews  in 
needlework — a  skill  which  they  are  supposed  to  have 
derived  from  the  Egyptians,  who  excelled  in  embroidery 
and  introduced  gold  thread  or  wire  into  their  work.  All 
the  gold  stitches  came  from  Phrygia,  and  that  country 
was  so  celebrated  among  the  ancients  for  its  embroidery 
that  the  Latins  knew  the  work  under  no  other  name  than 
Phrygian,  and  the  Roman  Generals  wore  the  "  toga  picta  " 
at  their  feasts — so  called  from  the  purple  fabric  being 
covered  with  gorgeous  embroideries.  But  the  Chinese 
used  embroidery  before  the  Phrygians,  and  beyond  that 
it  is  not  easy  to  trace. 

Babylonian  bas-reliefs,  Egyptian  frescoes,  Assyrian 
stone  fragments,  Greek  fictile  vases,  remains  of  Ro- 
man villas  and  tombs — all  testify  to  the  existence  of 
embroidery  as  a  fine  art. 

The  classic  writers  are  full  of  allusion  to  it.  In  Greece 
it  was  highly  honoured,  for  not  only  was  its  invention 
ascribed  to  Athene — in  itself  a  significant  fact — but  the 
maidens  who  took  part  in  the  Panathenaic  procession 
embroidered  the  "  peplos  "  or  veil,  upon  which  the  deeds 


142       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

of  the  goddess  were  wrought  in  gold.  The  references 
throughout  the  Iliad  and  Odyssey  are  very  numerous, 
and  we  gather  that  in  those  days,  as  in  the  latter  mediaeval 
ages,  it  was  the  occupation  of  distinguished  ladies  when 
their  lords  were  at  the  wars.  Even  the  fair  Helen 
herself  is  described  in  the  Iliad  as  sitting  apart  engaged 
on  a  work  which  portrayed  the  wars  of  Troy. 

"  Now  Iris  went  with  a  message  to  white-armed  Helen, 
and  in  the  hall  she  found  her  weaving  a  great  purple 
web  of  double  woof,  and  embroidering  thereon  many 
battles  of  horse-taming  Trojans  and  mail-clad  Achaians, 
that  they  had  endured  for  her  sake  at  the  hands  of 
Ares."  And  again  in  the  Odyssey :  "  Helen  stood  by 
the  coffers,  wherein  were  her  robes  of  curious  needle- 
work, which  she  herself  had  wrought." 

From  the  earliest  times  embroidery  was  devoted  to 
objects  of  ecclesiastical  use.  With  the  advent  of  the 
Church  came  ample  opportunity  for  the  highest  skill  in 
the  decoration  of  priestly  robes,  altar  cloths  and  hangings, 
and  from  that  date  the  art  became  historical.  Whatever 
may  be  thought  of  the  value  of  the  Church  to  humanity 
in  later  times,  it  was  for  many  centuries  the  school- 
master and  protector  of  the  arts  as  well  as  of  learning. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        143 

To  her  we  owe  that  embroidery  was  kept  alive  during 
the  dark  ages,  for  it  was  the  work  of  the  convents  and 
the  convent  schools.  To  the  revolution  that  overthrew 
her  with  the  Reformation  may  be  ascribed  the  debase- 
ment of  the  art  which,  when  it  ceased  to  be  demanded 
for  church  decoration,  became  the  plaything  of  princes, 
exchanging  its  sacred  symbolism  for  the  sentimental 
symbolism  of  corrupt  courts,  as  it  had  once  before 
exchanged  the  classic  symbolism  of  antiquity  for  that  of 
the  Church  itself. 

If  the  Old  Testament  and  Greek  and  Latin  writers 
impress  upon  us  the  importance  with  which  embroidery 
was  regarded  before  the  Christian  era,  still  more 
numerous  are  the  mentions  of  it  after  that  period.  The 
chronicles,  the  inventories  of  churches,  the  wardrobe 
accounts  of  kings  and  queens,  the  literature  of  poetry 
from  Chaucer  down  to  Taylor,  the  "  water-poet "  in 
the  1 7th  century,  all  abound  with  descriptions  that 
show  the  extent  to  which  it  was  cultivated.  Anastasius 
has  left  a  list  of  the  embroidered  gifts  given  by  popes 
and  emperors  to  the  churches  from  the  fourth  to  the  ninth 
centuries,  recording  their  subjects  also.  Church  inven- 
tories— minute  in  detail  as  to  vestments — show  that  they 


144       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

constituted  the  chief  offerings  of  the  high-born  dames. 
Wealthy  penitents  gave  dedicatory  needlework  as  drap- 
eries for  the  images  of  saints,  and  from  the  different 
chronicled  accounts  it  is  clear  that  before  the  end  of 
the  7th  century  ladies  were  skilled  in  the  art. 

Before  that  date  there  is  but  one  authenticated  name 
— that  of  the  Empress  Helena,  mother  of  Constantine, 
who  died  in  the  fourth  century,  and  is  said  to  have 
embroidered  an  image  of  the  Virgin.  The  "opus 
Anglicanum,"  of  which  we  hear  so  much  whenever 
embroidery  is  written  of,  was  certainly  produced  under 
the  Anglo-Saxons,  and  William  of  Poitou,  chaplain  to 
the  Conqueror,  relates  that  the  Normans  were  as  much 
struck  on  the  latter's  return  into  Normandy  with  the 
splendid  embroidered  garments  of  the  Saxon  nobles  as 
with  the  beauty  of  the  Saxon  youth. 

Although  as  far  as  book-covers  are  concerned  we  have 
nothing  to  do  with  the  "opus  Anglicanum,"  it  was  so 
curious  and  complicated  a  development  of  the  art  of 
needlework  that  a  few  words  may  be  given  to  it.  The 
term,  though  often  employed  for  old  English  embroidery 
of  any  kind,  is  in  its  true  application  limited  to  a  class 
of  ecclesiastical  work  only  in  which  the  faces  and  inside 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       145 

parts  of  the  figures  are  worked  in  chain  stitch  in  circular 
lines,  the  relief  being  given  by  means  of  hollows  sunk 
with  hot  irons.  Besides  this  attempt  to  reproduce  the 
effect  of  bas-relief  in  the  embroidered  figures,  some  give 
as  characteristics  of  the  style  the  admixture  of  jeweller's 
work  in  the  borders,  or  imitation  of  it  in  gold  thread ; 
others  the  peculiarity  of  the  "  laid  "  stitches  in  gold  which 
so  permeated  the  linen  grounding  as  to  give  the  look  of 
a  material  woven  with  gold  thread.  It  first  began  to  be 
celebrated  in  the  i2th  century,  and  that  its  value  was 
excessive  may  be  gathered  from  the  Librate  Roll  of 
Henry  III.,  which  states  that  in  1241  the  King  gave  a 
mitre  so  worked  to  Peter  de  Agna  Blanca  costing  ^82, 
a  considerable  sum  according  to  present  value.  The  best 
specimens  of  this  work  are  to  be  found  on  the  Continent, 
sent  no  doubt  as  gifts  to  popes  or  bishops  before  the 
Reformation,  or  sold  at  that  time  of  church  plunder. 
But  the  Syon  cope,  now  in  the  South  Kensington 
Museum,  is  among  the  finest,  and  the  account  of  it  in 
Dr.  Rock's  Catalogue  of  the  Embroideries  in  the  South 
Kensington  Museum,  is  most  instructive  to  students  of 
embroideries. 

That   English  work  had  a   continental  reputation  is 

L 


146       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

shown  by  an  anecdote  related  by  Matthew  of  Paris : — 
"About  this  time"  (1246),  he  says,  "the  Lord  Pope 
(Innocent  IV.)  having  observed  that  the  ecclesiastical 
ornaments  of  some  Englishmen,  such  as  choristers'  copes 
and  mitres,  were  embroidered  in  gold  thread  after  a  very 
desirable  fashion,  asked  where  these  works  were  made, 
and  received  in  answer,  in  England.  'Then,'  said  the 
Pope,  '  England  is  surely  a  garden  of  delights  for  us.  It 
is  truly  a  never-failing  spring,  and  there,  where  many 
things  abound,  much  may  be  extorted.'  Accordingly  the 
same  Lord  Pope  sent  sacred  and  sealed  briefs  to  nearly 
all  the  abbots  of  the  Cistercian  Order  established  in 
England,  requesting  them  to  have  forthwith  forwarded  to 
him  those  embroideries  in  gold,  which  he  preferred  to  all 
others,  and  with  which  he  wished  to  adorn  his  chasuble 
and  choral  cope  as  if  these  objects  cost  them  nothing." 

In  the  first  ages  of  the  Christian  era  embroidery  is 
spoken  of  in  contemporary  literature  as  "opus  plum- 
arium,"  or  feather  work,  of  the  meaning  of  which  we 
shall  say  more  later  on.  But  in  mediaeval  times  it  was 
better  known  as  "  aurifrascum  "  or  "  aurifrigium,"  i.e.,  the 
opus  Phrygium,  hence  the  name  of  orfrais  or  orfreys, 
first  found  in  Domesday  Book,  and  often  met  with 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       147 

afterwards  in  Chaucer  and  the  Roman  de  la  Rose. 
These  words  mean  generally  borders,  guardings,  facings, 
or  any  parts  of  a  material  in  which  gold  thread  was  used. 
The  term  embroidery  is  comparatively  modern,  and  its 
derivation  doubtful,  though  ascribed  generally  to  the 
Celtic  "broud,"  a  prick,  and  "brouda,"  to  prick,  while 
Barbaric  Latin  has  "brustus,"  "  brusdus,"  and  "auro- 
brustus." 

Up  to  about  the  i3th  century  needlework  was 
entirely  in  the  hands  of  cloistered  women,  being 
considered  a  very  serious  art,  a  branch  indeed  of 
painting;  but  from  the  Librate  Roll  of  Henry  III., 
which  gives  a  list  of  embroiderers'  names,  we  gather  that 
at  that  time  men  pursued  it  as  well  as  women,  and  in 
the  1 4th  century  one  Stephen  Vyne  was  so  highly 
commended  that  Richard  II.  and  his  Queen  appointed 
him  their  chief  embroiderer,  and  Henry  IV.  granted  him 
at  their  decease  a  yearly  pension  in  reward  of  his 
skilful  services.  Thus  from  the  extensive  inventories  of 
cathedral  vestments — Lincoln  alone,  for  example,  having 
six  hundred — and  the  Librate  Rolls,  which  show  the 
enormous  sums  paid  for  them — hundreds  of  pounds  in 
our  money  not  being  thought  too  much  for  a  single 

L  2 


148       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

vesture — we  can  gain  some  idea  of  the  service  of  em- 
broidery to  the  Church  as  the  handmaiden  of  ecclesiastical 
art.  Is  it  surprising  that  so  few  of  these  costly 
decorations  remain,  and  that  their  intrinsic  value  rather 
than  their  antiquity  is  the  cause  of  their  disappearance  ? 
Needlework,  however,  was  dedicated  to  other  services 
besides  that  of  the  Church.  Great  ladies,  at  a  time  when 
there  was  little  else  they  could  do,  spun  and  wrought  in 
their  castles  throughout  the  days  of  chivalry.  Mantles 
of  state,  heraldic  surcoats,  scarves  and  banners  occupied 
their  needles,  as  well  as  priestly  vestments  and  the 
adornment  of  altars.  Some  of  the  City  Companies  have 
still  the  gorgeous  palls  which  were  lent  to  cover  the 
coffins  of  their  liverymen  ;  the  Fishmongers'  is  especially 
notable,  and  the  Sadlers'  and  Ironmongers'  are  also  very 
fine.  Such  fondness  for  costly  raiment  had  crept  in  that 
the  statute  of  Edward  III.  against  excess  of  apparel 
enjoined  that  none  whose  income  was  below  four 
hundred  marks  a  year  should  wear  cloth  of  gold  or 
drapery  enamelled  or  embroidered.  These  elaborate 
raiments  were  faithfully  depicted  on  the  monuments 
of  the  nth,  1 2th,  i3th,  and  i4th  centuries,  so  that 
besides  the  written  statement  we  have  this  more 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       149 

trustworthy  authority.  A  well-known  example  of  the 
accurate  representation  in  stone  of  the  finest  work  of  the 
needle  is  the  surcoat  of  the  Black  Prince  in  Canterbury 
Cathedral,  and  when  in  1797  archaeologists  opened  King 
John's  tomb  in  Worcester  Cathedral,  they  found  him  in 
the  same  dress  and  attitude  as  that  portrayed  on  the 
recumbent  statue.  The  statute  above  named  gave  rise 
to  curious  methods  of  embroidery,  in  order  to  produce 
the  same  gay  results  by  means  of  less  costly  materials. 
So  in  the  second  year  of  Henry  VI.,  1422,  another 
statute  was  passed  whereby  all  such  dishonest  work  was 
to  be  forfeited  to  the  King.  It  set  forth  that  "  Divers 
persons  belonging  to  the  craft  of  Brouderie  make  divers 
works  of  Brouderie  of  insufficient  stuffe  and  unduly 
wrought  with  gold  and  silver  of  Cyprus,  and  gold  of 
Lucca  and  Spanish  laton  (tin),  and  that  they  sell  them 
at  the  fairs  of  Stereberg,  Oxford,  and  Salisbury  to  the 
great  deceit  of  our  Sovereign  Lord  and  all  his  people." 
With  this  statute  began  the  State  protection  of  the  trade, 
and  licensed  embroiderers  were  further  insured  against 
competition  in  1453  by  another,  forbidding  the  im- 
portation of  foreign  embroideries  for  five  years,  which 
was  re-enacted  under  Edward  IV.,  Richard  III.,  and 


ISO       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Henry  VII.,  and  only  partially  repealed  in  the  third  and 
fifth  of  George  III. 

To  what  extent  embroidery  constituted  the  occupation 
of  the  ladies  of  England  may  be  still  seen  in  the  baronial 
halls  that  remain.  Hatfield,  Knowle,  Penshurst,  and 
many  others  have  various  hangings  wrought  by  their 
hands,  for  embroidery  was  in  request  as  wall  decoration 
before  wainscoting  came  in.  In  Haynes's  State  papers 
we  read  that  Mary  Queen  of  Scots,  when  at  Tilbury 
Castle  in  1568,  said  to  a  correspondent  of  Sir  William 
Cecil  "that  all  day  she  wrought  with  her  nydell,  and 
that  diversity  of  the  colours  made  the  work  seem  less 
tedious,  and  she  continued  so  long  at  it  till  very  payne 
made  her  to  give  over."  With  gifts  of  this  sort  did  she 
seek  to  propitiate  Elizabeth,  herself  an  expert  in  the 
craft,  specimens  of  whose  work  are  shown  at  Penshurst 
in  Kent,  and  who  it  is  supposed  wrought  more  than  one 
of  the  book-covers  extant.  Hardwick  Hall,  Derbyshire, 
is  full  of  the  work  of  Bess,  Countess  of  Shrewsbury, 
whose  many  talents  are  thus  quaintly  described  :  "  Yet 
with  all  the  care  exercised  in  exalting  her  family  to  an 
extraordinary  pitch  of  greatness,  with  a  laudable 
ambition  to  decorate  her  native  country  with  the  most 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       151 

magnificent  residences  England  can  boast  of,  with  an 
affectionate  discharge  of  maternal  duties  to  fourteen 
children,  and  a  due  performance  of  the  conjugal 
obedience  claimed  successively  by  four  husbands,  she, 
like  all  the  gentlewomen  of  that  generation,  found 
leisure  to  embroider  her  arm-chairs  and  work  her  own 
counterpanes." 

In  its  highest  perfection  embroidery  was  exclusively 
an  English  art,  almost  to  the  reign  of  the  Stuarts,  when 
it  sank  into  a  debased  style.  Its  fall  came  with  the 
Civil  War  and  Puritanism  :  the  devastation  of  churches 
swept  away  the  fine  work  that  enriched  them ;  the 
abolition  of  monasteries  that  had  fostered  the  arts  of 
painting,  illumination,  and  needlework  completed  the 
destruction.  What  was  left  from  the  spoilers  and 
escaped  the  melting-pots  of  the  Jews,  is  mostly  possessed 
by  the  old  Roman  Catholic  families,  and  may  still  be 
seen  in  their  houses  and  chapels.  Abroad  the  Reforma- 
tion was  less  sweeping,  consequently  Germany  possesses 
far  more  ecclesiastical  art  remains,  and  has  thus  been 
able  to  do  a  great  deal  for  the  training  of  schools  of 
needlework.  The  reigns  of  the  Stuarts  show  how  low  it 
descended  under  their  patronage.  Charles  I.  sent  from 


152       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

his  prison  locks  of  hair  to  the  nobility  that  favoured  him, 
that  the  ladies  of  the  household  might  use  it  in  working 
his  portrait.  In  this  reign,  and  that  of  James  I.,  it  was 
the  fashion  to  do  portraits  in  needlework,  stitched  flat  or 
raised  :  they  are  mostly  exceedingly  bad,  but  the  library 
of  the  British  Museum  possesses  a  small  book  of  Psalms 
"  collected  into  English  meeter "  by  Sternhold  and 
Hopkins,  bearing  the  date  1643,  and  with  the  portrait  of 
Charles  I.  in  silks,  embroidered  on  white  satin,  which  is 
a  good  specimen  of  its  kind.  With  James  I.  we  reach 
the  work  known  as  embroidery  on  the  stamp — the  lowest 
point  in  the  history  of  the  art.  The  figures  of  people, 
flowers,  or  animals  were  stuffed  with  cotton  or  wool,  and 
raised  in  high  relief;  the  faces  were  sometimes  painted, 
and  the  hair  and  wigs  done  in  complicated  knotting. 
This  style  had  its  origin  in  Germany,  and  though 
thoroughly  inartistic  in  principle,  some  foreign  examples 
are  attractive,  but  the  English  ones  are  without  a  re- 
deeming quality.  I  have  come  across  one  or  two  book- 
covers  of  this  work,  but  luckily  most  that  we  have  are 
of  a  better  style. 

It  is  possible  that  besides  the  downfall  of  the  Church, 
protection  may  largely  have  contributed  to  the  loss  of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF'  BOOKBINDING.        153 

the  art  in  preventing  access  to  foreign  models.  We 
have  seen  with  what  severity  the  early  statutes  hindered 
the  expansion  of  the  craft.  Later  on  the  East  India 
Company,  who  had  the  monopoly  of  the  Anglo-Indian 
trade  under  Cromwell  in  1654,  could  well  have  en- 
couraged it  by  importing  the  best  Eastern  designs,  had 
not  embroidery  alone  of  Indian  manufactures  been 
contraband  by  these  ancient  statutes.  At  a  time  when 
our  work  was  most  debased,  that  of  Italy,  Spain,  and 
Portugal  was  at  its  best,  and  when  in  1707  the  Portuguese 
were  sending  their  silks  and  satins  to  be  worked  at  Goa, 
a  fresh  statute  was  obtained,  forbidding  the  importation 
from  India  of  any  wrought  material. 

The  majority  of  the  embroidered  bindings  in  the 
British  Museum  are  of  the  i7th  century,  and  nearly 
all  contain  works  of  devotion.  In  France  it  was  other- 
wise, but  in  this  country  it  is  the  exception  to  find 
secular  books  in  embroidered  covers. 

The  whole  Booke  of  Psalmes,  1619,  is  the  best 
preserved  of  all  those  in  the  Museum  library.  The  two 
figures  on  the  sides,  set  in  a  framework  of  silver  wire, 
are  still  gorgeous  with  the  colours  of  the  silks  used  two 
centuries  and  a  half  ago,  while  the  surrounding  scroll- 


154       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

work  of  "  purl  " — a  material  to  be  described  later  on — 

has  lost  but  little  of  its  brilliancy.     The  groundwork  of 

the  covers  was  always  velvet,  satin,  or  silk — mostly  the 

two  first — and  of  these  time  has  proved  velvet  to  be 

decidedly  the  best  and  most  suitable  material,  and  silk 

the  least  durable  of  the  three.     Nothing  is  known  of  the 

history  of  velvet,  whence  it  came,  or  what  people  made 

the  fortunate  discovery  of  its  manufacture.     It  probably 

originated,  as  well  as  satin,  in  China;  but  the  earliest 

places  where  it  was  made  in  Europe  are  all  we  know  for 

a  certainty,  and  these  were  the  south  of  Spain  and  Lucca. 

The   name    "velluto"    most   decidedly   indicates   that 

Italy  was  the  market  through  which  it  reached  us  from 

the  East.      It  was  no  doubt  fully  in  use  after  the  middle 

of  the    1 4th   century,    but    is    not    mentioned    in   the 

earliest  inventory  of  church  vestments   extant — that  of 

Exeter  Cathedral,  1277,  though  unmistakably  alluded  to 

for  the  first  time  in  the  later  one  of  1327. 

Satin  was  not  known  in  England  until  the  i4th 
century.  The  earlier  church  inventories  have  no  men- 
tion of  it,  but  it  is  named  among  the  rich  bequests 
made  by  Bishop  Grandison  to  his  cathedral  at  Exeter  in 
1340,  and  the  later  wardrobe  accounts  have  frequent 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        155 

mention  of  it.     Chaucer,  who  died  in  1400,  mentions  it 
in  his  Man  of  Lawes  Tale : — 

"  In  Surrie  whilom  dwelt  a  compagnie 

Of  chapmen  rich,  and  thereto  sad  and  trewe 
That  wide  where  senten  hir  spicerie, 
Clothes  of  gold,  and  satins  rich  of  hewe. " 

Velvet  and  satin,  then,  constituted  the  actual  covers 
of  the  books.  The  materials  used  for  their  enrichment 
were  floss  silks  of  many  colours  ;  gold  and  silver  threads 
of  various  thicknesses,  the  thinner  being  called  "  pass- 
ing "  ;  and  "  purl,"  a  material  imported  from  Italy  and 
Germany  in  the  i6th  century,  and  henceforth  much 
in  vogue.  To  these  may  be  added  spangles,  the  inven- 
tion of  which  has  been  attributed  to  the  Saracens, 
"  plate,"  and  "  lizzarding."  Plate  consists  of  narrow 
strips  of  gold  or  silver  metal  beaten  thin  and  stitched  on 
to  the  work  by  threads  of  silk  which  pass  across  them, 
and  lizzarding  is  likewise  the  metal  beaten  flat  and  thin 
but  coiled  round  a  silken  line.  Spangles  are  not  very 
often  found  on  book-covers,  pearls  being  much  more  preva- 
lent in  the  1 5th  century,  but  "  plate  "  and  lizzarding  were 
very  frequently  used,  especially  as  the  art  got  more  debased 
and  striking  effects  were  aimed  at  without  much  trouble. 


156       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Gold  thread  was  produced  by  twining  long  narrow 
strips  of  gold  or  gilt  silver  round  a  line  of  silk  or  flax,  and 
is  probably  almost,  though  not  quite,  as  old  a  process  as 
that  of  working  up  the  pure  metal  itself  into  a  hair-like 
thread  to  be  either  woven  into  the  raw  material  or  em- 
broidered on  it.  Probably  the  oldest  church  vestments 
were  embroidered  with  this  gold  wire,  though  in  later 
times  the  gold  thread  mostly  took  its  place.  It  is 
possible  that  the  reputation  of  Attalus  II.,  King  of 
Pergamus,  as  an  inventor  of  gold  tissues  may  have  arisen 
from  his  patronage  of  thread  of  gold,  for  the  gold  flat 
plate  or  wire  was  certainly  in  use  before  his  time.  It  is  a 
fact  that  in  the  i3th  century  ladies  used  to  spin  the  gold 
thread  needed  for  their  own  embroidery,  for  the  process 
which  they  followed  is  set  forth  as  one  of  the  items 
among  the  other  costs  for  that  magnificent  frontal 
wrought  1271  A.D.,  for  the  high  altar  at  Westminster 
Abbey.  The  bill  is  to  be  seen  in  the  Chancellor's 
account  for  the  year  fifty-six  of  Henry  III.  But  it  was 
also  imported,  and  the  gold  threads  that  still  preserve 
their  brilliancy  were  surely  Oriental,  and  probably  came 
over  in  the  bales  of  Eastern  merchants.  It  had  various 
names  from  the  places  where  it  was  made,  these  indicat- 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        157 

ing  also  its  quality.  Thus  may  be  seen  "a  vestment 
embroidered  with  eagles  of  gold  of  Cyprus  ;  "  and  again, 
"  a  cope  of  unwatered  camlet  laid  with  strokes  of  Venis 
gold,"  but  in  what  the  difference  consisted  I  do  not 
know,  though  experts  have  many  theories  on  the  subject. 

The  first  wire-drawing  machine  was  invented  at 
Nuremberg  in  the  i4th  century,  but  was  not  introduced 
in  England  until  200  years  later. 

"Purl"  is  a  spiral  wire  cut  into  lengths;  this  was  threaded 
on  silk  and  sewn  down  generally  over  packthread  in  the 
raised  portions  of  the  design  to  give  a  slight  relief.  The 
same  word  is  met  with  under  the  form  of  "  purfling,"  and 
its  derivation  is  from  "pour  filer,"  to  thread  on.  It  was 
sometimes  manufactured  with  a  coloured  silk  twisted 
round  the  metal,  though  not  concealing  it,  giving  a  very 
rich  effect.  The  small  corkscrew-like  rings  made  by  this 
coiled  wire  are  very  effective,  catching  the  light  in  a 
sparkling  way.  This  material  is  now  made  in  four 
different  varieties,  rough  and  smooth,  check  and  wire 
check  purl.  A  further  kind  called  bullion  is  also  to  be 
had  of  gold  and  silver  wire-makers. 

The  art  was  soon  discovered  of  making  all  these 
materials  in  an  inferior  way ;  in  such  cases  the  work  has 


158       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

perished,  so  far  as  its  artistic  value  is  concerned,  but  in 
the  best  days  of  needlework  only  the  finest  of  everything 
was  used.  In  the  history  of  embroidery,  accordingly,  it 
is  found  that  much  of  it  has  been  lost  from  two  contrary 
causes.  What  was  made  of  the  best  material  was  often 
melted  down  for  its  intrinsic  value,  and  what  was 
decorated  with  adulterated  metal  has  not  stood  the  test 
of  time.  In  these  days,  when  there  is  no  longer  any- 
thing to  fear  from  the  melting-pot,  there  is  no  doubt 
that  the  metal  threads  and  purl  used  should  be  only  of 
the  best. 

I  pass  on  now  to  consider  the  way  in  which  these 
materials  were  used,  and  the  kind  of  stitchery  most 
effective  for  the  purpose  of  book-covers.  The  finer  kinds 
of  metal  thread,  called  "passing"  and  "tambour,"  were 
either  worked  through  the  material  or  sewn  on  to  it  with 
silk  of  the  same  colour.  Sometimes  they  were  sewn  on 
flat  and  sometimes  raised  over  thread  or  even  cord  if  the 
relief  was  to  be  high,  but  this  was  done  only  on  satin 
and  velvet,  silk  embroidery  was  never  thus  raised. 
They  were  mostly  used  double,  the  lines  being  laid 
down  side  by  side  and  only  the  ends  passed  through 
from  the  back.  Occasionally,  too,  they  were  sewn  down 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       159 

with  a  bright  red  silk  that  added  lustre.     This  kind  of 

work,  in  which  the  gold  thread  is  stitched  on  the  surface 

by  threads  coming  from  the  back  of  the  material,  is 

called  "  couching,"   or  "  laid  "  work,  and  the  ancient 

modes  of  couching  were  very  numerous,  zigzags,  wave 

patterns,  and  all  kinds  of  diapers  being  produced  by  the 

position  and  arrangement  of  the  stitches  that  control  the 

gold  thread.     This  use  of  a  very  fine  passing  is  not  often 

found   on   book-covers,  but  there   is   one  in  the   MS. 

Department  of  the  British  Museum  which,  though  much 

worn,  is  an  interesting  specimen  of  this  class  of  work. 

It  is  a  Latin  psalter  of  the  commencement  of  the  i4th 

century,  which  belonged  subsequently  to  Anne,  daughter 

of  Sir  Simon  de  Felbrigge,  a   nun  in   the  convent  of 

Brusyard,  in  Suffolk,  to  which  she  bequeathed  it,  and 

where  the   figures   were  probably  wrought.      Only  the 

panels  now  remain.     Let  into   the  sides  and  patched 

with  leather,  these  represent   on  the  upper    side    an 

Annunciation,  and  on  the   lower  a  Crucifixion.      The 

figures  are  of  the  finest  workmanship,  and  stand  out  on 

a  ground  wrought  with  a  gold  thread  caught  down  in 

a  wave-like  pattern.      Different  sizes  of  gold  twist  were 

employed   for  scroll-work  or   for  outlining  leaves   and 


160       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

flowers,  or  for  bordering  the  raised  parts  of  the  design 
in  which  purl  was  used. 

The  kinds  of  stitches  used  in  the  gold  and  silk 
embroideries  are  comprised  in  classical  and  mediaeval 
authors  under  six  heads,  four  of  which  are  to  be  met 
with  on  book-covers. 

First  of  all  is  that  termed  Opus  Phrygium,  or  Orphreys, 
as  it  was  called  in  the  Middle  Ages,  which  includes  all 
passing  and  metal  thread-work  above  described.  It  was 
so  named  in  the  beginning  because  the  Phrygians  had 
attained  to  the  utmost  perfection  in  the  art  when  con- 
quered by  the  Romans,  who  imagined  them  to  have 
invented  it,  being  unaware  of  the  success  of  the 
Chinese  in  tissue  ornament.  The  Romans  imported  and 
domesticated  the  art,  and  afterwards  applied  the  name 
to  all  work  in  gold. 

Opus  Pulvinarium,  or  cushion  work,  includes  all 
stitches  regulated  by  the  thread  of  the  material,  such  as 
mosaic,  cross  and  tent  stitches,  as  well  as  chain  stitches 
— all,  in  fact,  except  the  flat  ones.  It  is  considered  to 
have  been  so  called  because  the  stitches,  being  firmly 
set,  were  found  most  suitable  to  shrines  and  cushions. 
Under  the  name  of  Berlin  work  it  has  become  wholly 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        161 

debased,  but  what  its  effect  can  be  may  be  seen  in  a  little 
volume  of  Psalms  in  the  British  Museum,  covered  in 
canvas  worked  all  over  in  tent  stitch. 

Opus  Plumarium,  or  feather  work,  embraces  all  flat 
stitches — of  which  the  distinguishing  mark  is  that  they 
pass  and  overlap  each  over — such  as  those  known  as 
" satin,"  "stem,"  "twist," and  "long  and  short  "  stitches. 
This  class  has  more  capabilities  in  it  than  any  other, 
as  the  design  may  grow  with  the  freedom  of  stitches  that 
are  not  counted  but  wrought  at  the  will  of  the  worker. 
The  origin  of  the  word  is  obscure.  Pliny  mentions  the 
Plumarii  as  craftsmen  in  the  art  of  acu  pingere,  or  paint- 
ing with  the  needle,  and  it  is  probable  from  the  feather 
patterns  found  in  Egyptian  art  that  first  feathers  them- 
selves and  later  the  imitation  of  them  were  used  in  the 
adornment  of  textile  fabrics.  Feather  application  was 
therefore  most  likely  the  first  motive  of  the  word,  which 
was  afterwards  extended  to  the  stitches  which  conveyed 
a  similar  effect. 

All  these  three  classes  are  to  be  found  exemplified 
either  alone  or  in  combination  upon  book-covers.  I 
give  the  remaining  three  for  the  sake  of  completeness. 
They  are  : — Opus  Consutum,  cut  or  applique  work,  and 

M 


162       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

of  this  there  is  one  example  on  a  binding  in  the  British 
Museum — the  only  one  I  have  so  far  come  across.  The 
Opus  Araucum  or  Filatorium,  net  or  lace-work,  and 
the  Opus  Pectineum,  tapestry  or  combed  work,  are 
naturally  not  represented  on  book-covers. 

It  is  almost  certain  that  the  application  of  embroidery 
to  binding  was  essentially  an  English  art,  and  nearly  all 
the  examples  in  our  national  collections  are  of  home 
workmanship.  The  Bibliotheque  Nationale  has  two 
on  view  in  the  Printed  Book  Department,  and  two  in 
the  MS.  Department,  which  are  of  native  work ; 
there  may  be  more,  but  according  to  the  rules  of  the 
library  it  is  impossible  to  make  any  researches  from  the 
point  of  view  of  a  particular  art,  as  one  must  know  the 
title  of  a  book  before  one  can  get  access  to  it.  Both 
those  in  the  first  department  are  folios — one  bound  for 
Louis  XIV.  in  blue  satin  has  his  arms  wrought  in  gold, 
silver,  and  silk,  and  those  of  France  and  Navarre  in  the 
corners ;  the  other,  bound  for  Louis  XV.  in  crimson 
velvet  with  gold  embroidery,  has  a  water-colour  portrait 
of  the  King  on  the  front  side,  and  the  arms  of  France  on 
the  other. 

"  Les  Gestes  de    Blanche    de    Castille,"   Queen  of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       163 

France,  in  the  MS.  Department,  dedicated  to  Louise  de 
Savoie,  one  of  the  many  French  ladies  who  had  a  famous 
and  well-bound  library,  is  covered  in  black  silk,  the 
stitchery  representing  a  hunting  scene  as  well  as  the 
presentation  of  the  book  to  Louise. 

The  most  interesting  one  of  the  four  is  a  small  collec- 
tion of  prayers  of  the  end  of  the  isth  century.  Inside 
the  boards  are  portraits — probably  of  the  possessors — the 
book  itself  being  covered  in  an  embroidery  in  very  fine 
cross-stitch  representing  the  Crucifixion  with  the  Virgin, 
St.  John,  and  the  angels. 

In  France,  however,  embroidery  was  more  frequently 
used  as  a  mere  envelope  for  a  book  of  devotion  richly 
tooled,  when  the  owner  was  in  mourning,  and  desirous 
that  nothing  gay  should  disturb  the  sombre  note  of  her 
apparel.  Such  a  one  Monsieur  Gruel  lately  discovered 
sewn  on  a  binding  still  fresh  in  appearance,  and  dating 
from  the  I'jih  century. 

Some  of  the  old  books  treating  of  the  art  of  needle- 
work are  very  valuable ;  of  others,  indeed,  only  the  titles 
are  known.  It  is  rather  a  curious  fact  that  the  English 
specimens  are  all  after  Elizabeth's  reign,  when  embroidery 
had  ceased  to  be  a  necessary  part  of  education.  Their 

M  2 


164       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

disappearance  may  perhaps  be  accounted  for  by  their 
having  been  cut  to  pieces,  and  used  by  women  to  work 
over  or  transfer  to  samplers.  Mr.  Douce,  in  his  illustra- 
tions to  Shakspere,  has  a  list  of  some  of  these  books. 
There  is  one  which,  from  the  dress  of  a  lady  and  gentle- 
man in  one  of  the  patterns,  appears  to  have  been 
originally  published  in  the  reign  of  James  I.  It  appears 
that  the  work  went  through  twelve  editions,  and  yet  a 
copy  is  now  scarcely  to  be  found.  It  is  entitled  The 
needle's  excellency,  a  new  booke,  wherein  are  divers 
admirable  workes,  wrought  with  the  needle.  Newly  in- 
vented^ and  cut  in  copper,  for  the  pleasure  and  profit 
of  the  industrious.  Printed  for  James  Boler,  1648." 
Beneath  this  title  is  a  neat  engraving  of  three  ladies  in  a 
flower  garden,  under  the  names  of  "  Wisdom,"  "  Indus- 
trie," and  "  Follie."  Prefixed  to  the  patterns  are  sundry 
poems  in  commendation  of  the  needle,  describing  the 
characters  of  ladies  who  have  been  eminent  for  their 
skill  in  needlework,  among  whom  are  Queen  Elizabeth 
and  the  Countess  of  Pembroke. 

If  the  art  of  embroidery  in  its  application  to  binding 
is  ever  to  come  into  fashion  again,  some  lessons  may  be 
learned  from  its  similar  employment  in  past  times.  And 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        165 

at  the  outset  it  may  be  said  that  it  is  only  applicable 
within  certain  limits.  Books  chosen  for  decoration  by 
needlework  should  be  such  as  are  not  meant  to  be  stood 
up  in  a  bookcase,  but  rather  intended  to  lie  on  a  table  or 
be  kept  in  a  case.  It  follows,  one  would  think,  that  the 
work  should  appear  only  on  the  upper  side  of  the  book, 
unless  it  is  of  so  flat  a  nature  as  not  to  interfere  with  its 
recumbent  position.  It  is  true  that  nearly  all  the  old 
embroidered  covers  were  worked  on  both  sides,  but  most 
of  them  are  much  more  worn  on  the  under  side,  the 
appearance  of  the  whole  being  thus  greatly  marred  by 
the  discrepancy  between  the  freshness  of  the  two  sides. 
If  the  design  is  not  in  relief  at  all,  being  worked  in  silk 
and  without  metal  thread  or  purl,  it  can  appear  satis- 
factorily on  both  sides. 

Another  condition  is  that  the  material  should  be  velvet 
rather  than  silk  or  satin,  as  being  much  more  durable, 
not  only  in  its  texture,  but  also  in  the  colours  in  which  it 
is  generally  made.  A  great  many  of  the  old  embroidered 
books  that  have  survived  are  worked  on  silk  or  satin  of 
very  delicate  colours,  and  with  silks  equally  delicate  in 
hue,  giving  artistically  the  most  charming  results.  But 
the  conditions  of  modern  life,  with  its  smoky  towns  and 


166       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

constant  struggle  with  dirt,  render  such  materials  quite 
unsuitable  now,  while  a  good  rich-coloured  velvet 
has  an  immense  amount  of  wear  in  it,  and  is  more 
dirt-resisting  than  many  a  delicate-coloured  calf  or 
morocco. 

Velvet,  then,  being  the  most  suitable  covering,  a 
further  limitation  is  brought  about  in  the  materials  with 
which  it  should  be  worked.  There  is  no  doubt  that  gold 
and  silver  passing  of  the  best  kind,  in  conjunction  with 
purl,  looks  best  on  velvet,  and  that  silks  are  more  suited 
to  the  ground  with  which  they  naturally  correspond.  On 
velvet  only  is  it  worth  while  expending  the  time  and 
trouble  of  an  embroidered  design.  There  is  a  book  in 
the  British  Museum,  Opera  franscisd,  Baronis  de  Veru- 
lamio,  1623,  bound  in  purple  velvet,  and  worked  with 
silver  purl  and  passing,  which  is  an  example  of  the  style 
of  work  most  adapted  for  revival.  Another,  which  may 
be  seen  in  one  of  the  show-cases  of  the  Museum,  entitled 
Oratioms  Dominicae  Explicatio^  bound  for  Queen  Eliza- 
beth in  1583,  is  in  material,  colour,  and  design  the 
most  perfect  example  of  this  style  of  work.  Bound  in 
dark  green  velvet,  the  sides  are  completely  filled  by  a 
well-balanced  design  of  comparative  simplicity,  worked 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        167 

with  couchings  of  gold  twist,  the  roses  and  leaves  being 
treated  with  purl  on  a  slightly  raised  foundation. 

I  may  roughly  class  the  embroidered  bindings  that  are 
within  reach  as  materials  for  study  under  four  heads — 
Those  with  heraldic  arms  blazoned  on  velvet;  those 
with  scroll-work  in  couchings  of  twist  and  metal  threads 
mixed  with  purl,  having  either  velvet  or  satin  as  ground- 
work ;  those  wrought  with  silks  on  silk  or  satin ;  and 
those  covered  entirely  with  fine  tapestry  stitch  in  silk 
on  a  linen  or  canvas  ground,  no  part  of  which  appears. 
In  comparing  these  different  classes  one  is  impressed  by 
the  fact  that  the  simplest  in  design  are  both  the  most 
effective  and  the  most  pleasing.  Here  and  there  may 
be  seen  one  that  is  both  complicated  and  successful,  but 
not  often — certainly  so  rarely  that  in  reviving  the  art 
complication  in  design  should  be  avoided  rather  than 
the  reverse.  The  two  first  classes  are  the  most  attractive 
and  suitable  for  models ;  there  is  always  a  distinction 
about  coats  of  arms,  and  set  on  a  fine-coloured  velvet 
with  a  simple  border  of  gold  twist  they  are  both  simple 
and  effective. 

There  are  two  very  fine  embroidered  covers  in  the 
South  Kensington  Museum.  One  is  of  white  satin 


168        HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

richly  embroidered  in  seed  pearls  and  coloured  silks 
which  have  not  lost  their  colour,  the  whole  being  still 
exceedingly  brilliant.  The  second  shows  a  blue  velvet 
cover  worked  with  silver  purl,  the  back  of  which  has 
an  extremely  original  design. 

In  the  beginning  of  this  century  a  French  binder 
called  Lesne  wrote  an  elaborate  poem  in  favour  of  his 
craft,  which,  like  similar  poems  with  a  purpose,  is  not  of 
any  great  merit  as  literature.  But  it  contains  some  good 
things,  and,  among  others,  two  lines  which  should 
become  the  motto  of  every  craftsman  : 

"  Un  art  n'est  qu'un  metier  dans  une  main  vulgaire  ; 
Un  metier  est  un  art  quand  on  le  sait  bien  faire.' 


APPENDIX  II. 

THE   USE  OF   METAL   IN   BOUND    BOOKS. 

BEFORE  the  multiplication  of  books  by  printing,  their 
covers  had  more  to  do  with  the  goldsmith's  art  than  with 
that  of  the  binder,  whose  labours  were  comparatively 
restricted.  In  those  days  his  functions  were  merely  to 
fasten  together  the  leaves  of  the  books  and  place  them 
between  two  boards,  which  were  then  decorated  by  the 
workers  in  precious  metals.  If  skins  were  used,  he 
covered  the  boards  in  leather  or  parchment ;  after  which 
they  passed  into  other  hands  for  the  fixing  of  metal 
clasps  and  hooks  to  keep  the  boards  shut,  and  in  most 
cases  nails  were  also  inserted,  the  round  and  projecting 
heads  of  which  preserved  the  flat  surface  of  the  binding. 

The  high  price  of  manuscripts  throughout  the  Middle 


170       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Ages,  due  to  the  scarcity  of  parchment,  and  the  time 
and  labour  necessary  for  transcription,  explains  the 
luxury  of  ornament  that  decorated  their  outsides.  The 
thick  wooden  boards — the  weight  of  which  was  necessary 
to  keep  the  parchment  flat — were  enriched  with  ivories, 
precious  stones,  engraved  gems,  plaques  of  gold  and 
silver  both  engraved  and  filigreed,  and  the  finest  enamels. 
As  the  books  were  not  often  transported  from  place  to 
place,  indeed  but  little  moved,  the  weight  of  their 
covers  was  not  a  matter  of  importance,  and  these  were 
sometimes  made  to  contain  relics  of  the  saints.  To  all 
such  work  the  name  Byzantine  has  been  applied,  prob- 
ably from  the  fact  that  Byzantine  art  flourished  and 
predominated  over  that  of  other  countries  from  the 
5th  to  the  i2th  centuries.  It  has  thus  no  meaning 
as  a  geographical  expression,  but  is  a  general  term 
applied  to  bindings  composed  of  these  arts  of  the 
gold  and  silversmith,  of  the  enameller  and  ivory-carver, 
executed  in  the  first  thirteen  centuries  of  the  Christian 
era,  and  influenced  in  spirit  by  the  art  of  the  lower 
empire. 

Of  these  bindings  those    enriched   with   sculptured 
ivory  diptychs  on  the  sides  are  perhaps  the  earliest. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        171 

These  were  already  in  use  in  the  time  of  the  Romans, 
the  name  being  derived  from  SiTr-ru^a,  the  two  wings, 
or  boards  of  the  pugillaria.  These  pugillaria,  or  table- 
books,  consisted  of  from  two  to  eight  leaves  of  ivory, 
wood,  or  metal,  wax-covered  to  take  the  impression  of 
the  stylus.  Their  preservation  naturally  suggested  a 
cover,  which  was  made  of  ebony  or  boxwood  connected 
by  two  or  more  hinges.  The  pugillaria  were  chiefly  for 
private  memoranda.  The  diptychs  were  larger,  and 
contained  public  acts  of  consuls  or  magistrates  inscribed 
on  their  wax-covered  leaves. 

The  curious  in  this  matter  can  consult  a  learned 
work  of  Gori  on  this  subject,  published  at  Florence  in 
1759,  and  entitled  Thesaurus  Veterum  diptychorum  Con- 
sularium  et  Eccksiasticorum,  a  work  in  three  folio 
volumes,  describing  these  diptychs  and  their  embellish- 
ment with  sculptured  ivories,  plates  of  silver  and  gold 
riveted  to  the  wood  and  finished  in  delicate  workman- 
ship. In  the  early  days  of  the  Church  there  were 
carved  illustrations  of  Scriptural  subjects,  generally  in 
compartments  containing  the  Saviour  and  the  Apostles, 
and,  indeed,  carved  especially  in  harmony  with  the 
contents  of  the  manuscript,  but  occasionally  the  plaques 


172       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

used  were  relics  of  pagan  days,  and  then  their  subjects 
were  naively  interpreted  in  a  Christian  sense  to  suit  the 
use  made  of  them.  Such  a  one,  for  example,  is  the 
famous  Messe  des  Fous,  with  a  musical  notation  of  the 
1 2th  century,  now  in  the  library  at  Sens.  The  cere- 
monies that  accompanied  this  office  de  la  Circondsion, 
and  which  were  tolerated  for  a  considerable  time,  were 
often  of  a  most  grotesque  and  extravagant  kind — hence 
its  name.  The  ivories  of  this  manuscript  represent  the 
triumph  of  Bacchus,  and  date  probably  as  far  back  as 
the  4th  century.  It  is  well  reproduced,  together  with 
other  ivories,  in  Labarte's  book,  Labarte  making  almost 
a  specialty  of  depicting  this  form  of  book-cover  as  Libri 
did  of  the  enamelled  ones. 

Of  the  three  classes  into  which  these  very  early 
bindings  most  naturally  fall,  ivories,  goldsmith's  work 
proper,  and  enamels,  the  gold  and  silver  work — pierced, 
chased,  or  engraved,  and  often  ornamented  besides  with 
precious  stones — occupies  the  middle  place,  enamelled 
covers  apparently  originating  when  gems  became  rare. 

Throughout  all  ancient  historical  records  mention  is 
made  of  this  second  class  of  bindings,  wrought  by 
command  for  the  wealthy  to  dedicate  to  the  Church,  or 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        173 

by  the  monks  themselves  as  cases  worthy  of  the  devo- 
tional works  which  they  enclosed,  and  often  placed  in 
homage  on  the  high  altar  itself.  The  number  that  has 
come  down  to  our  times  is  very  small,  nor  is  it  surprising 
that  they  should  not  have  escaped  the  plunder  that  took 
place  during  the  different  vicissitudes  of  the  Church. 

Those  extant  are  scattered  over  various  museums  and 
libraries  of  Europe,  and  it  is  unfortunately  very  rare  to 
find  any  previous  to  the  i2th  century  on  the  manu- 
scripts for  which  they  were  originally  designed.  Torn 
from  what  they  once  covered  on  account  of  their  worth 
they  have  either  been  recaptured  and  applied  to  others 
of  later  date ;  or  the  book  itself  ceasing  to  be  of  value, 
they  have  been  removed  and  kept  as  works  of  art  on 
account  of  their  beauty  or  historic  interest.  From  time 
to  time  those  so  preserved  have  been  facsimiled  in  such 
books  as  Labarte's  Histoire  des  Arts  Industriels, 
Lacroix's  Moyen  Age  et  la  Renaissance,  and  Libri's 
Monuments  inedits.  M.  Libri,  it  is  well  known,  possessed 
a  larger  number  of  these  valuable  covers  than  almost 
any  other  collector,  and  in  his  book  they  are  reproduced 
according  to  their  original  size  and  in  their  original 
colours. 


174       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

This  form  of  costly  protection  to  the  not  less  costly 
MSS.  had  itself  in  turn  to  be  protected,  and  thus  these 
books  were  often  enclosed  in  boxes  which  were  them- 
selves sometimes  the  work  of  the  goldsmith,  or  else  in 
outer  covers  of  chevrotin,  a  thin  leather,  or  sendal,  a 
rough  silk.  These  coverings  were  termed  in  later  times 
chemises,  and  sometimes  chemises  a  queue,  when  there  was 
a  margin  of  stuff  which,  when  the  MS.  was  being  read, 
folded  up  on  to  the  page  and  so  allowed  a  hold  on  the 
parchment  without  the  risk  of  soiling  it  with  the  fingers. 
These  chemises  appear  in  inventories  and  catalogues  of 
libraries  of  the  i4th  and  i5th  centuries.  They  are  very 
rarely  met  with,  but  one  of  red  sendal  may  be  seen  in 
the  Louvre  enveloping  a  Book  of  Hours  of  St.  Louis. 
The  same  thing,  in  a  modified  form,  and  made  of  red 
velvet,  preserves  a  large  folio  in  the  MS.  Department 
of  the  British  Museum — the  original  book  of  in- 
dentures made  between  King  Henry  VII.  and  John 
Islippe,  Abbot  of  Westminster,  for  the  foundation 
of  the  King's  Chantry,  dated  the  i6th  of  July  in 
the  nineteenth  year  of  his  reign  (1500).  The  boards 
of  this  book  are  covered  in  red  damask  cut  at 
the  top  in  a  wave  pattern.  The  velvet  cover  lined  with 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        175 

damask  is  loose  on  the  silk-covered  boards,  except  for 
an  attachment  here  and  there  where  the  bosses  and 
clasps  of  silver-gilt  enamelled  are  affixed  to  them.  It  is 
cut  much  larger  than  the  book  at  the  head  and  tail,  and 
is  also  brought  round  over  the  fore-edge,  the  clasps 
lying  on  the  side.  Attached  by  silken  cords  are  five 
impressions  of  the  King's  Great  Seal,  each  contained  in 
a  silver  box  adorned  with  the  royal  badges.  This  book 
is  in  the  Harleian  collection,  to  which  it  was  presented 
by  Sir  Thomas  Hoby  of  Bisham,  in  the  county  of 
Berks,  and  is  altogether  very  interesting,  though  the 
workmanship  is  more  curious  than  beautiful.  A  con- 
temporary duplicate  copy  of  the  inside  was  made  for 
use  by  the  same  hand. 

The  third  class  of  costly  bindings  of  the  Middle  Ages 
are  the  Limoges  enamelled  covers — a  style  often  em- 
ployed alone,  or  else  in  conjunction  with  gold  and 
precious  stones.  These  are  more  fitly  studied  as  enamels 
than  as  bindings.  They  are  divided  into  two  classes  : 
the  kind  known  as  partitioned  or  chatnpleve,  which  is  the 
oldest  and  dates  back  to  the  i2th  century,  or  perhaps 
even  to  the  early  times  of  Byzantine  art ;  and  the  painted 
enamels,  which  did  not  commence  before  the  second 


176       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

half  of  the  i5th  century.  It  is  the  older  style  to  which 
M.  Libri  devotes  eleven  plates  with  not  unnatural 
pride,  as  they  are  of  extreme  rarity.  The  Cluny  Museum 
possesses  two  splendid  plaques  which  once  adorned  a 
book  :  one  of  them  represents  the  Adoration  of  the 
Magi,  the  other,  Etienne  de  Muret,  founder  of  the  Order 
of  Grandmont,  talking  with  St.  Nicolas,  and  the  inscrip- 
tion fixes  the  date,  "  +  Nicolas  Ert  parla  k  mone  Teve 
de  Muret." 

Milan  Cathedral  has  a  still  older  and  finer  specimen 
in  a  book-cover  presented,  it  is  said,  by  the  Archbishop 
Aribert  to  this  church  in  1020.  It  is  described  in  Les 
Arts  au  Moyen  Age,  by  Du  Sommerard. 

As  the  monasteries  were  the  depositories  of  the  arts 
and  sciences  until  the  invention  of  printing,  so  there 
were  monks  whose  special  avocation  it  was  to  bind  the 
manuscripts  which  others  of  their  fraternity  had  written 
and  embellished.  Warton,  in  his  History  of  English 
Poetry^  gives  an  interesting  account  of  the  scarcity  of 
books  at  this  period,  and  of  the  details  concerning  their 
maintenance.  It  was  part  of  the  sacrist's  duty  to  bind 
and  clasp  the  books  used  in  the  service  of  the  church, 
and  for  this  purpose  a  room  called  the  Scriptorium  was 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        177 

set  apart  in  every  great  abbey  where  those  worked  who 
transcribed,  as  well  as  those  who  bound  and  ornamented. 
The  same  writer  tells  us  •  how  some  of  the  classics  were 
written  and  bound  in  the  English  monasteries,  and 
mentions  one  Henry,  a  Benedictine  monk,  of  Hyde 
Abbey,  near  Winchester,  who  in  the  year  1178  tran- 
scribed Terence,  Boetius,  Suetonius,  and  Claudian,  which 
he  bound  in  one  volume,  and  formed  the  brazen  bosses 
of  the  covers,  with  his  own  hand. 

Ecclesiastical  histories  show  that  estates  were  often 
granted  for  the  support  of  the  Scriptorium,  and  that 
special  grants  were  not  unfrequently  made  for  pur- 
poses connected  with  the  actual  binding  of  books. 
Thus  Charlemagne,  about  790,  gave  an  unlimited  right 
of  hunting  to  the  monks  of  Sithin  for  making  their  gloves 
and  girdles  of  the  skins  of  deer,  and  covers  for  their 
books.  Nigel  gave  the  monks  of  Ely  two  churches  in 
1160  "  ad  libros  faciendos ;"  and  the  constitutions  of  the 
several  monasteries  enjoined  care  in  the  binder's  craft,  as 
well  as  in  the  preservation  of  the  libraries.  Monks  alone, 
like  princes,  had  the  right  of  practising  many  arts ;  they 
could  be  writers,  illuminators,  binders,  and  goldsmiths, 
instead  of  their  functions  being  limited  to  the  perform- 

N 


178       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

ance  of  one  single  craft,  or  even  part  of  a  craft,  as  was 
statutory  in  the  trade  guilds  outside  the  Church  and  the 
Throne.  So  it  came  about  that  up  to  the  discovery  of 
printing,  the  multiplication  of  books  and  their  decoration 
remained  entirely  in  the  hands  of  monasteries,  and  until 
the  middle  of  the  i4th  century  religious  art  prevailed 
over  any  form  of  secular  art. 

The  monk  The'ophile,  of  whom  nothing  personal  is 
known,  wrote  about  the  middle  of  the  nth  century  a 
treatise  of  the  utmost  importance  on  the  arts  of  paint- 
ing or  calligraphy,  glass-staining,  and  goldsmith's  work. 
This  work,  entitled  Diversarum  artium  schedula,  gives 
technical  descriptions  of  so  complete  a  kind  that  the  arts 
described  could  be  practised  from  them,  and  as  The'ophile 
himself  was  both  a  painter  of  manuscripts  and  a  worker 
in  glass,  gold,  and  enamel,  it  is  probable  that  it  was 
destined  for  monks,  and  that  convents  always  included 
one  or  more  monks  able  to  repair  or  make  the  necessary 
goldsmith's  work  for  ecclesiastical  purposes.  This 
explains,  no  doubt,  why  the  skill  applied  to  the  jewelled 
covers  or  boxes  for  their  missals  was  of  such  a  high  order, 
for  those  capable  of  fashioning  cups  and  vessels  of 
sacramental  plate  would  find  it  no  impossible  task  to 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        179 

beat  out  the  plates  of  gold  or  silver  for  the  adornment 
of  their  devotional  books. 

It   was   not   till  the  i4th   century   that   the    secular 
branch  of  goldsmith's  work  had  a  position  apart.     Up  to 
that  time  the  making  of  shrines,  reliquaries,  and  cups 
was  their  chief  occupation.    During  the  following  century 
they  widened  their  sphere  of  labour  by  manufacturing 
gold  and  silver  plate,  and  enriching  the  treasury  and 
even   the   wardrobes  of  kings    and   nobles.     With   the 
1 6th     and     i7th    centuries    workmanship     superseded 
the   weight  of  the    precious   metals.      The   goldsmith 
of  that    time   had   to   be   sculptor,    modeller,    smelter, 
enameller,  jewel-mounter,   and   metal-worker  combined, 
and  hence  there  is  more  unity  about  the  metal-wrought 
bindings  of  that  time  than  there  is  about  the  earlier  ones. 
Indeed,  an  important  point  to  be  observed  in  connec- 
tion with  the  Byzantine   covers  is,  that  they  have  not 
the  unity  that  belongs  to  a  single  work  of  art.     Portions 
of  them  made  by  different  artists  at  different  periods, 
and  even  in  different  countries,  were  incorporated  in  one 
cover,  or  smaller  ones  were   subsequently  adapted   to 
larger  volumes   by   resetting  them   in   borders   and  so 
enlarging  their  capabilities.     It  is,  perhaps,  partly  due  to 

N  2 


i8o       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

this  feature  that  the  term  Byzantine  has  been  applied  to 
this  mixed  work,  not  wholly  so  much  to  express  its  con- 
nection with  a  particular  country  or  period,  but  rather 
to  indicate  a  certain  type,  the  characteristic  of  which  is 
this  admixture  of  materials  often  somewhat  incongruous 
and  rarely  the  work  of  a  single  hand,  and  which  followed 
therein  the  example  set  by  much  of  the  art  of  Byzantium 
itself. 

It  is  only  the  later  ornamented  covers  that  can  with 
any  propriety  be  treated  of  as  bindings.  The  magnificent 
ways  in  which  the  monks  habited  their  manuscripts  not 
less  costly  than  the  precious  metals  themselves,  are 
mostly  fitted  to  be  studied  as  the  work  of  the  goldsmith. 
So  it  is,  too,  with  the  iyth  century  covers  made 
entirely  of  metal,  pierced,  beaten,  and  engraved.  As 
specimens  of  this  last  class  we  may  mention  two  in  the 
British  Museum  and  two  in  the  South  Kensington 
Museum. 

Perhaps  the  best  specimen  of  all  is  in  the  British 
Museum  —  a  German  binding  of  the  xyth  century 
in  gilt  metal,  pierced  and  engraved.  The  back  of  the 
cover  is  treated  in  the  same  way,  in  two  longitudinal 
compartments  hinged  together  to  allow  of  the  better 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       181 

opening  of  the  volume,  which  is  somewhat  thick.  The 
edges  of  the  leaves  are  painted  and  gauffered,  the  head 
and  tail  being  protected  at  the  back  by  a  flat  metal  cap 
also  pierced  and  chased — forming  part  of  the  cover. 
The  whole  is  a  most  beautiful  example  of  a  metal 
binding.  It  contains  a  Frauenzimmer  Spiegel,  or 
series  of  female  characters  taken  from  the  Old  and  New 
Testament,  by  Hieron  Orteln,  with  forty  engravings. 

The  second  in  the  same  collection  is  also  a  German 
binding.  It  is  of  silver,  ornamented  with  a  Niello  border 
surrounding  open  silver  tracery.  It  contains  Flosculi 
historiarum,  by  Jean  de  Bussieris,  dated  1688,  but  the 
cover  is  older  than  the  book.  To  this  goldsmith's 
chasing,  known  as  Niello  work,  is  traced  the  art  of 
engraving,  for  the  workman  was  in  the  habit  of  rubbing 
a  black  substance  into  the  lines  he  cut  to  see  how  his 
work  progressed. 

The  best  in  the  South  Kensington  Museum  is  a  cover 
of  arabesque  open  work  in  silver-gilt,  probably  Dutch 
work  about  1670.  It  is  a  good  example  of  a  mode  of 
treating  book-covers  not  often  resorted  to,  but  very 
effective,  in  which  the  ornamentation  is  concentrated  on 
the  front  instead  of  the  back  portion  of  the  book  ;  and 


i8a       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

which    is   as   suitable    for   flat   tooling   as   for   pierced 
work. 

Another  is  that  of  a  very  delicate  piece  of  work  con- 
taining Good's  Jesum  liebender  Seelen  tagliche  Himil- 
reis,  published  at  Nuremberg  in  1704.  It  is  in  a  con- 
temporary binding  of  oak  boards  covered  with  per- 
forated silver-work,  and  has  similar  silver  clasps.  Both 
the  piercing  and  chasing  as  well  as  the  design  are  in  the 
most  perfect  taste. 

There  are  three  chief  sources  of  information  for 
bindings  and  book  ornaments  during  the  i4th  and 
1 5th  centuries  :  these  are  the  inventories  of  libraries, 
chiefly  foreign,  such  as  those  of  the  splendid  col- 
lections of  the  Dukes  of  Burgundy  and  of  Orleans ; 
the  wardrobe  accounts  of  English  kings  and  queens,  like 
those  of  Edward  IV.  kept  by  Piers  Courtneys  in  1480, 
and  edited  by  Sir  H.  N.  Nicolas ;  and  the  wills  and 
bequests  of  the  nobles  and  rich  men  in  this  country  at  a 
time  when  books,  as  such,  were  still  valuable,  and  when 
it  was  customary  to  leave  them  as  legacies  both  to  friends 
and  to  ecclesiastical  bodies.  I  shall  glance  at  each  of 
these  in  turn,  and  see  how  the  books  of  the  time  were 
described  in  detail  as  works  of  art,  which  they  really  were. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        183 

Belonging  to  the  Dukes  of  Burgundy  were  Heures 
de  la  Croix  in  "  a  binding  embellished  with  gold  and 
fifty-eight  large  pearls  in  a  case  made  with  camlet,  with 
one  large  pearl  and  a  cluster  of  small  pearls ; "  the 
romance  of  the  Moralite  des  homes  sur  le  Ju  des 
Eschiers  (game  of  chess)  "  covered  in  silk,  with  white 
and  red  flowers,  and  silver-gilt  nails  on  a  green  ground  ; " 
a  book  of  Orisons  "  covered  in  red  leather  with  silver- 
gilt  nails ; "  a  Psalter  "  having  two  silver-gilt  clasps 
bound  in  blue,  with  a  golden  eagle  with  two  heads  and 
red  talons,  to  which  is  attached  a  little  silver-gilt  instru- 
ment for  turning  over  the  leaves,  with  three  escutcheons 
of  the  same  arms,  covered  with  a  red  velvet  chemise." 
Belonging  to  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  brother  to  Charles  VI., 
we  find  Vegece's  book  On  Chivalry  "covered  in  red 
leather  inlaid,  which  has  two  little  brass  clasps;  the 
Book  of  Mehadus  covered  in  green  velvet  with  two 
silver-gilt  clasps  enamelled  with  the  arms  of  his  Royal 
Highness ;  the  book  of  Boetius  on  Consolation,  covered 
in  figured  silk ;  the  Golden  legend  covered  in  black 
velvet  without  clasps."  These  same  inventories  give  an 
account  of  the  prices  paid  for  the  bindings  and  their  ac- 
cessories. Thus  on  September  igth,  1394,  the  Duke  of 


184       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Orleans  paid  to  Peter  Blondel,  goldsmith,  twelve  livres 
fifteen  sols  for  having  wrought  besides  the  Duke's  silver 
seal,  two  clasps  for  the  book  of  Boetius ;  and  on  January 
1 5th,  1398,  to  Emelot  de  Rubert,  an  embroideress  at 
Paris,  fifty  sols  tournois  "  for  having  cut  out  and  worked 
in  gold  and  silk  two  covers  of  green  Dampmas  cloth,  one 
for  the  Breviary,  the  other  for  the  Book  of  Hours  of  the 
aforesaid  nobleman,  and  for  having  made  fifteen  markers 
and  four  pairs  of  silk  and  gold  straps  for  the  said  books." 
From  the  accounts  of  these  two  libraries,  which  were 
partly  destroyed  and  partly  disseminated  among  the 
great  public  collections,  it  is  possible  to  obtain  a  de- 
scription of  every  form  of  binding  and  decoration  in 
vogue  during  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries. 
These  books  were,  of  course,  manuscripts,  and  it  may  be 
observed  that  while  the  Duke  of  Burgundy  had  his 
bound  for  the  most  part  as  soon  as  he  acquired  them, 
the  Duke  of  Orleans  obtained  his  ready-bound,  and  only 
had  those  re-covered  that  were  in  need  of  it  by  his  two 
binders,  Guillaume  de  Villiers  and  Jacques  Richier,  to 
whom  various  sums  of  money  are  assigned  in  the  inven- 
tories for  skins,  clasps,  nails,  &c.,  all  mentioned  in 
detail. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       185 

To  turn  to  our  own  country,  the  wardrobe  and  privy 
purse  accounts  of  Edward  IV.,  Henry  VIII.,  Mary, 
and  Elizabeth  all  show  the  same  love  of  binding  as  an 
art,  with  the  same  minute  descriptions.  From  the 
accounts  of  the  first-mentioned  monarch  we  take  the 
following  entry  : — "  Delyvered  for  the  covering  and 
garnysshing  vj  of  the  Bookes  of  oure  saide  Lorde  the 
Kynges,  that  is  to  say,  oon  of  the  Holy  Trinite,  oon  of 
Titus  Lyvius,  oon  of  the  Gouvernal  of  Kynges  and 
Princes,  a  Bible,  a  Bible  Historialle,  and  the  vjth  called 
Froissard.  Velvet  vj  yerdes  cremysy  figured ;  corse  of 
silk,  ij  yerdes  di'  and  a  naille  blue  silk  weying  an  unce 
iij  q'  di' ;  iiij  yerdes  di'  di'  quarter  blac  silk  weying  iij 
unces ;  laces  and  tassels  of  silk  xvj  laces ;  xvj  tassels, 
weying  to  gider  vj  unces  and  iij  q' ;  botons  xvj  of  blue 
silk  and  gold  ;  claspes  of  coper  and  gilt  iij  paire  smalle 
with  roses  uppon  them  ;  a  paire  myddele,  ij  paire  grete 
with  the  Kyng's  Armes  uppon  them ;  bolions  coper  and 
gilt  Ixx ;  nailes  gilt  ccc."  The  bolions  named  were  a 
sort  of  button  used  as  fastenings  of  books  made  of  copper 
and  gilt,  and  cost  about  eighteen  pence  each. 

Velvet  was  a  favourite  material,  and  is  the  most 
frequently  mentioned  in  these  lists,  with  or  without 


i86       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

ornamentation.  Among  Henry  VIII.'s  expenses  may  be 
seen  paid  to  "  Rasmus  one  of  the  Armerars  for  garnishing 
of  divers  books  " — which  was  apart  from  binding — on 
one  occasion  ;£n  55.  7d.,  on  another  "^34  ios.  for 
garnishing  thirty-six  books,"  probably  only  the  fixing  of 
clasps,  corners,  bosses,  and  the  like  to  the  sides. 
Skelton,  the  poet  laureate  of  Henry  VIII.,  thus  describes 
one  of  his  missals  : — 

With  that  of  the  boke  lozende  were  the  claspes, 
The  margin  was  illumined  al  with  golden  railes, 
And  bice  empictured  with  grass-oppes  and  waspes, 

With  butterflies,  and  fresh  pecocke  tailes, 

Englored  with  flowers,  and  slymy  snayles, 
Envyved  pictures  well  touched  and  quickely, 
It  would  have  made  a  man  hole  that  had  be  right  sickly, 
To  behold  how  it  was  garnished  and  bound, 
Encoverde  over  with  golde  and  tissue  fine, 
The  claspes  and  bullions  were  worth  a  M.  pounde, 

With  balassis  and  carbuncles  the  border  did  shine 

With  aurum  mosaicum  evey  other  line. 

We  know  from  the  numerous  books  emblazoned  with 
the  arms  of  Henry  VII.  that  that  monarch  must  have 
possessed  a  fine  library,  which  was  no  doubt  augmented 
under  his  son.  The  German  traveller  Hentzner, 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        187 

who  visited  the  royal  library  in  1593,  which  was  then 
located  at  Whitehall,  says  that  it  was  well  furnished  with 
Greek,  Latin,  Italian,  and  French  books,  all  bound  in 
velvet  of  different  colours,  yet  chiefly  red,  with  clasps  of 
gold  and  silver  ;  and  that  the  covers  of  some  of  them  were 
adorned  with  pearls  and  precious  stones. 

The  library  of  the  British  Museum  possesses  many 
books  once  belonging  to  the  royal  collection,  from  the 
time  of  Henry  VII.,  from  which  we  see  that  neither 
Mary  nor  Elizabeth  fell  behind  their  predecessors  in  a 
love  of  costly  bindings. 

At  the  end  of  Nichols's  Progresses  of  Queen 
Elizabeth  there  is  a  list  of  "gifts  given  to  her  majestic 
at  Newyeres-tide  1582,"  and  among  them  "a  boke  of 
gold  enamuled  garnished  with  viii  amarestes  given  by 
Mr.  Packington  ; "  and  again,  "  a  little  booke  of  gold 
enamuled  garnished  and  furnished  with  smale  diamondes 
and  rubyes,  both  claspes  and  all  hanging  at  a  chayne  of 
gold,  viz  vi  pieces  of  gold  enamuled  two  of  them  gar- 
nished with  ragged  staves  of  smale  sparcks  of  diamondes 
and  iv  of  them  in  eche,  n  smale  diamonds  and  two 
smale  sparcks  of  rubyes  xvi  lesser  pieces  of  golde, 
in  evey  of  them  a  smale  diamonde,  also  xxiv  pieces  of 


188       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

golde  in  evey  of  them,  iv  perles  with  a  ring  of  golde  to 
hang  it  by  all  given  by  therle  of  Leycester  master  of  the 
horse."  In  the  inventory  of  her  jewels  and  plate  made 
in  the  sixteenth  year  of  her  reign  several  ornamental 
books  are  thus  described :  "  Gone  Gospell  booke, 
covered  with  tissue  and  garnished  on  th'  onside  with  the 
crucifix  and  the  Queenes  badges  of  silver  gilt,  poiz  with 
wodde,  leaves,  and  all  cxij  oz ; "  and  again,  "  Oone  booke 
of  the  Gospelles  plated  with  silver,  and  gilt  upon  bourdes 
with  the  image  of  the  crucifix  ther  upon  and  iiij 
evangelists  in  iiij  places  with  two  greate  claspes  of  silver 
and  guilt,  poiz  lii  oz.gr.  and  weing  with  the  bourdes, 
leaves,  and  binding  and  the  covering  of  red  vellat,  cxxjx 
oz." 

I  have  mentioned  wills  as  a  fertile  source  of  in- 
formation concerning  bindings ;  such  works  as  the 
Testamenta  Vetusta  of  Nicolas,  and  the  wills  and  in- 
ventories published  by  the  Surtees  Society ;  and  others 
drawn  from  the  archives  contain  bequests  of  bo6ks,  of 
which  the  following,  from  the  will  of  Lady  Fitzhugh, 
1427,  is  a  specimen;  "  Als  so  I  wil  yat  my  son  William 
have  a  Ryng  with  a  dyamond  and  my  son  Geffray  a 
gretter,  and  my  son  Robert  a  sauter  cov'ed  with  red 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       189 

velwet,  and  my  doghter  Mariory  a  primer  cov'ed  in 
Rede,  and  my  doghter  Darcy  a  sauter  cou'ed  in  blew, 
and  my  doghter  Malde  Eure  a  prim'  cou'ed  in  blew." 
Eleanor,  Countess  of  Arundel,  left  by  will  to  Ann,  wife 
of  her  nephew  Maurice  Berkeley,  a  book  of  Matins 
covered  with  velvet,  and  her  daughter  Ann,  Duchess  of 
Buckingham,  a  primer  covered  with  purple  velvet  with 
clasps  of  silver-gilt. 

The  most  successful  example  of  the  application  of 
silver  ornaments  to  binding,  both  from  the  simplicity  of 
design  as  well  as  perfection  of  finish,  may  be  seen  in  an 
octavo  volume  in  the  manuscript  department  of  the 
British  Museum  bound  in  green  velvet — Le  Chappelet 
de  Jesus  et  de  la  Vierge  Marie.  It  contains  a  metrical 
Life  of  Christ,  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  &c., 
illustrated  by  a  series  of  miniatures  executed  for  Anna, 
wife  of  Ferdinand,  King  of  the  Romans,  afterwards 
Emperor.  Her  name  and  the  monogram  IHS  are  on 
the  clasps.  The  book  seems  afterwards  to  have  come 
into  the  possesion  of  Margaret  Tudor,  wife  of  James  IV. 
of  Scotland,  the  letters  of  the  name  of  Marguerite  in 
Tudor  roses  forming  the  bosses  of  the  binding,  which  is 
of  the  sixteenth  century.  Another  good  specimen 


igo       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

though    of   very   different  character,    is   A   Meditation 
upon  the  Lord's  Prayer  (with  the  text)  written  by  the 
Kings  Majestic  (James  I.)  for  the  benefit  of  all  his  sub- 
jects especially  of  such  as  follow  the  court.     London  1619. 
This  is  the  King's  own  copy  bound  in  purple  velvet, 
with  shields  bearing  the  royal  arms,  clasps  with  I.  R., 
the  King's  initials,  and  corner  pieces,  all  in  silver.     The 
corners  on  the  upper  side  have  the  crowned  fleur-de-lys 
as  the  badge  of  France,  the  crowned  harp  as  that  of 
Ireland,  the  crowned  thistle  for  Scotland,  and  the  cross, 
also  crowned,  for  England.     The  precise  meaning  of  the 
latter  does  not  appear ;  it  was  probably  taken  out  of  the 
crown,  of  which  the  cross  is  always  a  part  in  the  arms  of 
England,  but  it  does  not  seem  to  be  found  elsewhere  as 
a  separate  emblem  in  this  significance.     Those  on  the 
under  cover  are  at  the   two  top  corners ;   a   crowned 
thistle,  and  a  crowned  lion  sitting  holding  a  sceptre  and 
sword — both   badges   of  Scotland ;    and   at   the    lower 
corners,  a  rose  and  lion  on  a  cap  of  maintenance,  both 
crowned,  the  crests  of  England. 

The  clasps  have  the  portcullis,  which  was  the  badge 
used  in  reference  to  the  descent  of  the  Tudor  family, 
from  the  house  of  Beaufort,  and  is  thus  accounted  for  in 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        191 

Willement's  Regal  Heraldry  : — "  Catherine  Swinford, 
a  mistress  and  subsequently  wife  of  John  Duke  of 
Lancaster,  resided  at  the  castle  of  Beaufort,  in  Anjou 
and  at  that  place  gave  birth  to  a  son  named  John, 
maternal  grandfather  of  King  Henry  VII.,  who  with 
others  of  her  children  by  the  Duke  were  in  29  R.  2 
legetimated  and  had  the  surname  De  Beaufort  given  to 
them."  The  portcullis  was  evidently  the  type  of  this 
castle,  the  place  of  their  nativity.  Henry  VII.  some- 
times added  to  it  the  words  "  altera  securitas,"  intimating 
that,  as  the  portcullis  was  an  additional  defence  to  a 
fortress,  so  his  claim  to  the  crown  through  the  blood  of 
Beaufort  should  not  be  rejected,  although  he  possessed 
it  by  more  sufficient  and  undeniable  rights. 

I  have  described  this  little  book  at  some  length,  for 
apart  from  its  interest  as  a  King's  copy  and  work  of  art, 
it  is  a  typical  example  of  the  problem  to  be  worked  out 
in  many  a  like  specimen — a  problem  often  historical  and 
frequently  complicated  by  emblematic  and  heraldic 
devices,  from  the  deciphering  of  which  may  be  gathered 
generally  the  approximate  date  of  the  binding,  and  not 
unfrequently  the  name  of  the  owner  and  the  circum- 
stances of  its  origin. 


192       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

A  new  Testament,  dated  1643,  is,  like  the  last,  in 
duodecimo,  and  may  be  also  seen  in  one  of  the  show- 
cases of  the  King's  Library  in  the  British  Museum.  It 
is  bound  in  red  velvet,  with  silver  corners  and  clasps 
bearing  allegorical  figures  of  the  cardinal  virtues,  and  of 
the  four  elements,  with  ornamented  medallions  of  King 
Charles  I.  and  Queen  Henrietta  in  profile.  The  back 
has  some  strips  of  braid  upon  it,  which  are  inappropriate 
to  the  silver  ornaments.  Both  this  and  King  James's 
book  are  capital  specimens  of  one  of  the  most  attractive 
classes  of  book  ornament  of  the  time — that  of  velvet 
with  silver  mountings. 

Another  kind  of  decoration  much  in  vogue  for  books 
was  enamel.  Eleanor,  Duchess  of  Gloucester,  men- 
tions in  her  will  in  1339  "a  chronicle  of  France  in 
French,  with  two  clasps  of  silver,  enamelled  with  the 
arms  of  the  Duke  of  Burgundy ;  a  book  containing  the 
Psalter,  Primer,  and  other  devotions,  with  two  clasps  of 
gold  enamelled  with  her  arms ;  a  French  Bible  in  two 
volumes,  with  two  gold  clasps  enamelled  with  the  arms  of 
France  ;  and  a  Psalter  richly  illuminated,  with  the  clasps 
of  gold  enamelled  with  white  swans,  and  the  arms  of  my 
lord  and  father  enamelled  on  the  clasps."  Unfortunately 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       193 

no  reproduction,  except  a  coloured  one,  conveys  any  idea 
of  the  beauty  and  delicacy  of  this  form  of  ornamentation  ; 
but  the  lover  of  this  work  will  find  two  examples  in 
the  British  Museum,  which  are  unequalled  for  fine  colour 
and  exquisite  design.  They  are  both  gold  enamels ;  one 
is  a  centre-piece,  or  rather  two  centre-pieces  that  de- 
corate a  folio  New  Testament  bound  in  green  velvet 
which  the  Stephanus  press  published  in  1550.  The  gold 
plates  are  very  thin,  of  a  diamond  shape,  measuring 
only  2 1  inches  by  2^,  and  fastened  to  the  boards  of  the 
book  with  nails — that  on  the  upper  cover  having  the 
arms  of  Elizabeth,  that  on  the  under  side  a  crowned 
Tudor  rose. 

In  Nichols's  Progresses  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  her 
visit  to  Cambridge  University  in  1578  is  related,  and 
after  mentioning  the  public  orator's  speech,  the  gifts 
to  the  Queen  are  thus  described  :  "  About  the  end 
of  his  oracion,  the  orator  making  mention  of  a  present, 
Mr.  Daniel  Rowland,  then  Vice-Channcelour,  making 
his  three  ordinarie  curtesies,  and  then  kneeling  at  her 
Majestie's  feete,  presented  unto  her  a  New  Testament 
in  Greek  of  Robert  Stephanus,  his  first  printing  in 
folio,  bound  in  redde  velvett,  and  lymmed  with  gowld, 

o 


194       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

the  armes  of  England  sett  upon  each  side  of  the  book 
very  fair ;  and  on  the  third  leaf  of  the  book,  being  fair 
and  clean  paper,  was  also  sett  and  painted  in  colours  the 
armes  of  the  universitie  with  these  writings  following." 
Then  follows  a  long  Latin  inscription.  The  British 
Museum  copy  has  not  the  arms  of  Cambridge  thus 
painted  inside,  and  so  this  cannot  be  the  book  here 
described  ;  but  it  is  just  possible  that  the  enamel  centre- 
pieces may  once  have  decorated  the  Queen's  own  copy. 

Another  specimen  of  enamel  work  also  exhibited 
is  from  the  library  of  George  III.,  a  volume  of  Christian 
meditations,  bound  in  light  red  velvet,  now  worn  quite 
threadbare,  with  corners,  clasps,  and  centre-pieces  of 
gold  enamelled  in  colours.  It  formerly  belonged  to 
Queen  Elizabeth,  whose  initials  and  badge  are  embla- 
zoned thereon. 

Gold  filigree  work  was  also  often  used,  both  for  clasps 
and  corners,  and  has  an  extremely  light  and  pleasing 
effect.  A  Book  of  Hours  in  the  manuscript  department 
of  the  British  Museum  is  a  good  example.  It  was 
written  in  Latin  on  vellum  in  France,  at  the  close 
of  the  1 5th  century,  and  is  bound  in  dark  red  velvet. 
It  has  also  some  curious  cushion  markers,  which  were 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        195 

an  added  luxury  to  books  of  that  time.  Each  marker — 
and  there  are  several — is  made  of  silk  or  brocade, 
and  though  not  fastened  to  the  book,  is  kept  from 
slipping  through  it  by  means  of  a  little  pillow  of  the 
same  material.  This  collection  of  tiny  cushions  attached 
to  each  other  rests  on  the  top  of  the  book,  and  the  ends 
of  the  markers,  which  are  long,  are  often  embroidered 
with  gold  and  silver  thread. 

There  is  one  style  of  binding  about  which  a  few 
words  may  not  inappropriately  be  said  here.  Tortoise- 
shell  covers  are  peculiar  to  the  i7th  century.  Sometimes 
plain,  except  for  an  edging  of  silver,  with  silver  corners 
and  clasps,  or  more  often  dexterously  inlaid  with  silver 
and  mother-of-pearl,  they  form  a  pleasant  diversity  to  the 
richer  and  more  highly  ornamented  bindings  which  were 
then  beginning  to  be  more  and  more  rare.  The  South 
Kensington  Museum  contains  three  specimens,  of  which 
the  most  interesting  is  perhaps  a  very  small  volume 
containing  a  book  of  prayers,  written  on  vellum  in 
Hebrew  with  illuminations,  the  little  tortoise-shell  covers 
being  inlaid  with  silver-gilt,  filigree,  pique*,  and  incrusted 
work.  It  is  Spanish,  about  1747,  and  only  measures 
three  inches  by  two  and  a  quarter. 

O  2 


196       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

The  British  Museum  has  also  three  or  four  of  these 
covers.  One  of  a  book  of  Jewish  daily  prayers,  Amster- 
dam 1667,  is  a  fine  octavo,  enriched  with  two  silver 
hinges,  besides  clasps  and  centre-piece  of  silver,  as 
well  as  a  top  ornament  with  a  ring  for  suspending  the 
book.  A  small  quarto,  also  containing  Jewish  prayers 
is  treated  in  a  similar  way  without  the  centre  and 
suspension  pieces.  Paradiess-Gartlein  by  Arndt,  Ulm, 
1772,  is  elaborately  inlaid  with  silver  and  mother-of-pearl 
on  the  sides,  and  bordered  with  a  plain  band  of  silver — a 
very  delicate  piece  of  work.  This  sort  of  book-cover 
is  mostly  German  or  Dutch,  and  does  not  appear  to  have 
obtained  in  either  France  or  England. 

The  disappearance  of  these  costly  kinds  of  decoration 
for  books  was  very  gradual,  and  even  after  the  taste 
for  the  more  precious  metal  ornaments  had  subsided, 
and  given  place  to  the  hardly  less  elaborate  tooling 
of  leather  covers,  the  use  of  silver  clasps,  with  or  without 
corners,  continued.  These  are  to  be  found  in  great 
variety,  at  the  sellers  of  old  silver  in  all  parts  of  the 
world.  Some  time  ago  there  was  a  fashion  for  their 
use  as  cloak-fastenings,  and  it  is  lucky — that  being  so — 
that  there  soon  sprang  up  a  manufacture  for  their  repro- 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       197 

duction  by  means  of  casting,  else  those  that  really  once 
adorned  the  old  bindings  might  be  still  less  rare  than  is 
actually  the  case.  As  it  is,  many  a  second-hand  silver- 
smith can  produce  genuine  silver  book  ornaments,  some 
just  as  they  were  when  torn  from  the  books,  to  be  got 
for  little  more  than  the  price  of  the  silver  ;  others,  alas  ! 
already  adapted  to  feminine  needs.  In  Holland  and 
Belgium  especially,  the  collector  may  still  pick  up  the 
unadapted  specimens.  One  such  may  be  seen  in  the 
South  Kensington  Museum,  in  silver  pierced  work, 
engraved  and  having  the  sides  heart-shaped — a  delightful 
specimen  of  what  may  be  done  with  little  technical 
labour,  when  the  design  is  simple  and  appropriate.  It 
is  German  work,  and  was  bought  at  the  Annual  Inter- 
national Exhibition  in  1872,  for  ten  shillings  ! 

Why  should  clasps  have  disappeared  from  modern 
English  bookbinding,  except  in  the  case  of  Bibles  and 
prayer-books  when  they  are  of  an  inartistic  and 
thoroughly  commonplace  character  ?  It  is  not  the  case 
in  France,  where  such  a  firm  as  that  of  Messrs.  Gruel 
and  Engelmann  turn  out  numerous  books  with  silver 
clasps,  not  of  course  wrought  by  hand,  but  of  excellent 
Renaissance  design,  and  no  doubt  hand-finished.  There 


198       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

is  scope  for  a  renewal  of  such  work  in  our  time,  though 
I  think  if  it  is  to  take  place  it  should  always  be  hand- 
wrought,  and  applied  to  books  that  are  intended  for 
what  the  French  call  reliures  de  fantaisie.  We  hear  a 
great  deal  about  metal-work  now,  and  indeed  see  both 
embossed  and  pierced  copper  and  brass-work  as  finger- 
plates, bowls,  dishes,  and  many  other  lesser  articles 
of  domestic  use.  Why  does  not  some  of  this  industry  go 
towards  the  embellishment  of  our  books  ?  The  material 
needed,  though  somewhat  expensive  to  start  with,  has 
always  its  intrinsic  value,  and  but  a  small  amount  is 
required;  the  tools,  too,  are  mostly  those  used  for 
the  harder  metals,  and  need  less  effort  in  their  manage- 
ment. The  most  important  point  to  be  observed  is 
that  the  silver,  which  should  not  be  thicker  than  a 
three-penny  piece,  is  either  alloyed  like  foreign  silver 
or  else  annealed  so  as  to  be  of  the  necessary  hardness 
and  resistance.  The  delicate  little  corners  that  come  off 
an  old  book  are  often  extremely  slight,  and  yet  perfectly 
firm  and  solid.  If  the  metal  used  is  too  ductile  it 
is  impossible  to  avoid  a  flimsy  and  weak  effect.  The 
design  should  be  first  traced  or  engraved,  then  the 
raising  should  follow,  and  the  piercing  be  done  last  of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       199 

all.  This  is  effected  by  means  of  a  fret  saw,  and  it 
is  not  more  difficult  to  cut  metal  than  wood  except  in 
the  case  of  iron.  To  do  either  well  requires  some 
practice,  and  a  good  piercer  never  touches  his  work 
with  files,  but  lets  it  be  as  the  saw  leaves  it.  Such 
work  is  well  within  the  range  of  the  amateur  craftsman, 
though  he  may  need  professional  assistance  in  the 
mitring  of  the  corners  and  making  the  hinge  and 
fastening  of  the  clasp. 

A  last  word  as  to  the  mounting  and  application  of 
such  ornament.  It  should  be  always  on  a  plain  material 
— if  leather,  untooled;  if  silk  or  velvet,  undecorated 
in  any  other  way.  Morocco,  pigskin,  velvet,  or  the 
deerskins  now  prepared  with  a  soft  rough  underside 
are  all  suitable,  and  a  book  well  but  plainly  bound 
in  one  of  these  coverings,  and  decorated  solely  with 
corners,  clasps,  and  perhaps  a  badge  in  silver,  can 
be  no  better  habited  than  after  this  fashion  of  the 
1 6th  century. 


APPENDIX  III. 

BOOK-EDGE  DECORATION. 

OF  the  minor  details  of  bookbinding  there  is  no  one 
that  used  to  meet  with  more  attention  and  that  is  now 
more  neglected  than  the  ornamentation  of  the  edges. 

The  old  modes  of  edge  decoration  were  nearly  always 
gilt-edge  decoration — that  is  to  say,  the  edges  were 
mostly  gilt  either  before  or  after  the  application  of  the 
ornament — and  may  be  roughly  divided  into  three 
classes  : — First,  what  is  now  known  under  the  various 
names  of  gilding  a  V antique,  "  tooled  "  or  "  gauffered  " 
edges  ;  second,  gilding  on  marbled,  painted,  or  coloured 
edges ;  and  third,  gilding  on  landscapes.  Each  of  the 
two  first  classes  includes  different  varieties  of  the  same 
process. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       201 

The  first  had  its  rise  in  France  in  the  reign  of  Louis 
XII.,  and  was  reserved  for  important  works  mostly 
destined  for  the  king.  Ornaments,  arms,  and  the 
devices  of  the  sovereign  were  impressed  upon  the  edges, 
and  this  refinement  of  book  luxury  was  then  known  as 
" antiqucr  sur  trancJies"  though  its  more  modern  title  is 
" ciseler  sur  tranches"  Nearly  all  the  books  in  the 
original  binding  of  the  sixteenth  century  are  so  orna- 
mented. According  to  M.  Gruel  the  most  ancient  book 
known  to  be  so  "  tooled  "  is  a  Recueil  de  Pihes  latines  et 
grecques,  published  by  Frangois  Tissard,  and  printed  at 
Paris  by  Gilles  de  Concourt  about  1507.  It  is  an  octavo 
volume  bound  with  the  arms  and  emblems  of  Louis 
XII.,  and  the  conventionalised  floral  design  on  the  edges 
is  entirely  worked  by  hand.  It  is  in  the  Bibliotheque 
Mazarine. 

Our  own  national  library  possesses  many  specimens  of 
this  kind  of  work,  and  if  there  are  none  of  equal  import- 
ance to  the  above,  there  are  many  of  charming  design 
and  of  a  style  especially  appropriate  to  the  limitations  of 
the  subject. 

The  process  by  which  designs  of  this  class  are 
executed  is  very  simple,  though  to  make  complete 


SANTA  BARBARA  STATE  GQLLEOE  LIBRARY 


202       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

designs  for  circumscribed  spaces,  requires  the  workman 
to  be  an  artist.  After  the  edge  is  gilt  in  the  ordinary 
way,  a  coat  of  size  is  lightly  passed  over  it.  When  dry, 
the  edge  is  slightly  rubbed  with  palm  oil  to  make  the 
gold  adhere,  and  then  covered  with  gold  leaf  of  a 
different  colour  to  the  first  used.  The  tools  for  the 
various  designs  are  then  slightly  warmed  and  impressed 
upon  the  edge.  A  still  more  delicate  way  is  to  take  up 
the  gold,  cut  in  small  pieces,  from  the  cushion  on  the 
tools,  so  as  to  avoid  sizing  the  already  gilded  surface. 
The  gold  that  has  not  been  touched  by  the  tools  is  then 
lightly  rubbed  off,  and  there  remains  an  effective  pattern 
of  one  coloured  gold  upon  another.  Of  course  there  is 
no  necessity  to  use  the  two  kinds  of  gold ;  in  many  of 
the  designs,  the  tools  have  been  worked  straight  on  to 
the  original  gilded  edge.  A  further  variety  may  be  seen 
when  the  design  looks  dull  upon  a  bright  ground.  This 
is  achieved  by  working  the  tools  on  the  edge  when  the 
gold  leaf  has  been  flattened  on  and  not  burnished.  The 
impressions  being  slightly  sunk,  the  edge  may  be  bur- 
nished afterwards  without  touching  them,  and  they  will 
consequently  remain  dull. 

In  France,  book  edges  are  still  treated  somewhat  after 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       203 

this  manner,  and  the  " ciselure  des  tranches"  forms  a 
separate  trade.  But  the  decoration,  strange  to  say,  is 
almost  entirely  confined  to  books  of  devotion,  and  is 
carried  out  mostly  in  a  stereotyped  fashion  that  deprives 
it  of  any  attractiveness,  and  without  any  of  the  elaborate- 
ness and  appropriateness  of  design  that  characterise  the 
best  examples  of  the  historic  period.  The  patterns  are 
traced  by  means  of  dots  worked  with  fine  punches  and 
a  light  hammer.  Although  lovers  of  fine  bindings  in 
France  are  very  numerous,  and  the  prices  they  pay  their 
masters  of  the  art  are  often  those  of  a  picture  or  a  gem, 
the  taste  for  these  decorated  edges  seems  to  be  altogether 
a  thing  of  the  past.  It  is  a  pity  that  it  should  be  so,  for 
edge  gilding  is  carried  out  to  great  perfection,  and 
inasmuch  as  any  form  of  painting  under  gold  requires 
great  delicacy  in  the  operation  of  gilding,  the  French 
would  no  doubt  achieve  great  success  in  all  modes  of 
edge  decoration.  One  has  only  to  compare  a  book 
gilded  in  London  with  one  done  by  a  good  Paris 
workman  to  see  that  what  is  but  a  rough  handicraft  here 
is  a  fine  art  over  there. 

The  next  class  of  edge  ornament  is  rather  later  than 
the    earliest    specimens    of  the    first,    and    comprises 


204       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

different  modes  of  painting  and  colouring  the  edges 
underneath  the  gold,  with  or  without  the  combination  of 
tooling.  Such  work  is  very  difficult  of  reproduction  ;  a 
good  deal  of  the  charm  of  it  lies  in  the  painted  parts, 
and  these  being  worn  with  age  are  but  rarely  visible  in 
their  integrity.  As  examples,  however,  of  the  results 
attained,  we  may  mention  two  folios  in  the  British 
Museum.  Both  are  German  bindings  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  the  first  entitled  De  Maria  Virgine,  Canisius, 
Ingolstadii,  1577,  from  the  library  of  Albert  V.,  Duke 
of  Bavaria;  the  other  Der  Stat  Nurnberg  Verneute 
Reformation,  Franckfurt  am  Main,  1566.  The  edges 
are  fairly  well  preserved,  and  the  figures  of  the  Virgin 
and  Child  which  are  painted  on  the  one,  and  the  arms 
of  Nuremburg  on  the  other,  are  clearly  seen.  The  latter 
is  the  best  planned  and  executed  design ;  the  details  of 
the  painted  arms  are  most  delicately  tooled,  and  the  rest 
of  the  design  is  thrown  up  by  means  of  the  ground  or 
field  being  matted  down  by  a  small  punch  very  carefully 
worked. 

Another  German  binding  of  the  same  date,  Auslegung 
des  Evangellii  Matthcei,  Leipzig,  1575,  in  the  South 
Kensington  Museum,  has  a  quaint  and  well-disposed 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       205 

painting  of  the  Day  of  Judgment  on  the  fore-edge 
which  is  not  gilded.  There  is  a  beautiful  pearl  embroi- 
dered book  in  the  same  collection,  mentioned  in  the 
paper  on  embroidered  bindings.  A  New  Testament 
and  Psalms  in  Dutch,  1594,  which  has  an  elaborate 
painting  of  numerous  figures  on  the  fore-edge  carried  out 
in  the  most  delicate  water-colours  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  defy  reproduction.  This,  again,  is  one  of  the  few 
specimens  executed  neither  under  nor  over  gold.  Per- 
haps, on  the  whole,  some  of  the  finest  specimens  of  this 
class  are  the  seven  folio  volumes  in  the  South  Kensington 
Museum  which  comprise  the  complete  works  of  Luther. 
They  are  dated  Jena,  1572 — 1581,  and  are  bound  in 
brown  calf,  elaborately  tooled.  The  volumes  being  very 
thick,  the  edges  offer  considerable  scope  for  ornament. 
The  only  part  painted  is  the  shield  of  Saxony  in  the 
centre  of  each  fore-edge,  the  remainder  of  the  space 
being  filled  up  with  complicated  arabesques  and 
Renaissance  ornaments. 

While  on  this  subject,  I  may  mention  that  in  the  year 
1875  there  was  offered  to  the  trustees  of  the  British 
Museum  a  set  of  170  volumes,  formerly  belonging  to 
Odorico  Pillone  of  Belluno,  and  at  that  time  in  the 


206       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

possession  of  Signor  Bayolle,  of  Venice,  a  relative  of 
Count  Pillone.  These  books  were  remarkable  for  being 
adorned  by  Cesare  Vecellio,  a  nephew  of  the  great  Titian 
and  author  of  "  Costumes  Ancient  and  Modern,  of 
Different  Parts  of  the  World,  with  discourses  on  the 
same,"  published  at  Venice  in  1590,  and  again  in  1598. 
In  this  discourse,  which  treats  of  the  dress  of  a  "  gentil 
donna"  of  Civital  di  Belluno,  Vecellio  mentions  with 
great  enthusiasm  the  Casa  di  Pillone,  one  of  the  chief 
families  of  the  little  town,  and  their  charming  villa  of 
Casteldardo.  Cesare  Vecellio  was,  no  doubt,  a  friend  and 
favourite  at  this  villa,  and  hence  his  brush  and  pen 
ornamented  a  considerable  portion  of  its  fine  library. 
Twenty  out  of  these  170  volumes,  clad  in  vellum 
wrappers,  have  these  wrappers  enriched  by  designs  in 
pen  and  ink  or  washed  in  with  Indian  ink  by  Vecellio. 
Over  140  are  remarkable  for  their  fore-edges  being 
painted  by  the  same  hand.  Most  of  these  are  folios 
of  the  second  half  of  the  i5th  or  first  part  of  the 
1 6th  century,  clad  in  dark  leather,  and  creamy  pig-skin, 
rough  with  deeply  stamped  devices  on  bosses  of  brass, 
and  fastened  with  clasps  or  strings.  Such  books  were 
commonly  placed  with  their  backs  to  the  wall  and  their 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       207 

fore-edges  exposed,  and  the  latter,  being  thick,  presented 
a  fine  field  for  the  pencil  of  Vecellio.  The  late  Sir 
Stirling-Maxwell  thus  described  some  of  these  edges : 
"  Vecellio  has  generally  contented  himself  with  a  single 
figure  grandly  designed  and  boldly  coloured.  St. 
Jerome,  sometimes  in  the  red  robes  of  the  cardinal, 
sometimes  in  the  semi-nudity  of  the  hermit,  appears  in 
various  attitudes  on  the  fore-edges  of  the  portly  edition 
of  his  works,  printed  by  Froben  at  Basle  in  1537. 
Augustine's  De  Civitate  Dei, Venice,  1494,  has  that  good 
bishop  in  his  study,  with  a  view  of  Hippo,  I  presume,  by 
the  seashore,  in  the  back-ground,  looking  very  like 
Venice.  Galen's  Opera,  Basle,  1529,  is  decorated  with 
a  doctor  in  his  scarlet  robes,  and  hat  trimmed  with 
ermine.  Dante,  Venice,  1491,  of  course  has  the  well 
known  figure  in  red  with  the  capucho  of  old  Florence. 
The  Dictionarium  of  Calepin,  Lugduni,  1578,  has  a  vase 
with  a  tall  flower  of  many  blossoms ;  Eutropius,  Basle, 
1532,  shows  the  heads  of  three  emperors ;  and  Suetonius, 
Basle,  1533,  the  same  number  of  gold  medallions  on  a 
light  blue  ground."  Though  the  trustees  of  the  Museum 
did  not  purchase  this  fine  Venetian  library,  it  is  still  in 
this  country,  and  it  is  by  the  courtesy  of  its  present 


208       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING 

owner  that  I  have  been  enabled  to  give  this  account 
of  it. 

In  the  present  day,  little  is  done  in  the  direction  of 
painted  edges.  Gilding  on  marbled  or  plain  coloured 
edges  appears  to  be  the  only  way  in  which  this  luxe  des 
livres  is  carried  out.  The  edges  are  for  this  purpose 
first  marbled,  the  colours  being  used  rather  sparingly ; 
when  dry  slightly  rubbed  with  very  fine  sand-paper  to 
take  off  the  roughness  of  the  colour,  and  then  burnished 
with  an  agate.  The  size  is  then  lightly  applied,  the  gold- 
leaf  put  on  at  once,  and  finished  off  as  in  ordinary  edge 
gilding.  When  dry  the  marble  appears  through  the 
gold.  An  inverted  form  of  this  process  appears  in  what 
the  French  call  "  Dorure  sur  tranches  Damassees."  This 
consists  of  first  gilding  the  edge,  slightly  burnishing  to 
fix  the  gold,  and  then  marbling  in  the  ordinary  way. 
When  the  colours  are  dry  a  further  burnishing  is  all  that 
is  necessary. 

The  last  class  deals  with  landscape  representations 
on  the  fore-edge,  a  mode  of  decoration  of  which  there 
are  no  known  English  examples  before  the  latter  half 
of  the  1 8th  century.  It  is  effected  in  the  following 
manner: — When  the  edges  are  well  scraped  and  burnished 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       209 

they  are  fanned  out,  and  in  this  position  confined 
between  two  boards  and  tied  tightly  on  each  side.  A 
subject  is  then  painted  on  them  in  either  water-colours 
or  some  sort  of  stain  or  coloured  ink  free  from  body 
colour.  When  perfectly  dry  the  boards  are  untied  and 
the  leaves  take  their  proper  position.  The  book  is  then 
put  in  the  press  and  thinly  gilt  once,  the  gold  being 
flattened  by  the  burnisher  without  polishing.  Another 
coating  of  gold  is  then  applied,  and  it  is  burnished  in  the 
usual  way.  The  first  coating  of  gold  protects  the 
colours,  and  the  second,  penetrating  the  first,  unifies  the 
whole,  so  that  it  is  completely  identified  with  the  leaves. 
When  the  volume  is  closed  the  picture  is  not  seen  for 
the  gold,  but  when  the  leaves  are  drawn  out  in  the  pro- 
cess of  opening,  it  at  once  becomes  apparent.  The  only 
thing  necessary  for  the  success  of  this  mode  of  decoration 
is  that  the  objects  should  always  be  drawn  a  little  short, 
so  that  they  attain  their  full  height  by  the  spreading  of 
the  leaves.  The  man  whose  name  is  especially  identified 
with  this  work  is  Edwards  of  Halifax,  and  his  books  are 
pretty  frequently  met  with. 

A  recent  specimen  of  this  kind  of  work  may  be  seen 
on  the  British  Museum  copy  of  Mr.  Loftie's  Kensington, 

p 


210       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Picturesque  and  Historical  1883,  the  fore-edge  having 
two  small  views  painted  on  it  by  Mr.  Luker,  junior. 
This  is  by  far  the  most  attractive  form  of  edge  de- 
coration, with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  a  really  well- 
planned  and  executed  design  of  the  first  class  ;  it  needs, 
of  course,  an  artist  to  make  the  water-colour  drawing, 
and  for  the  book  also  to  be  printed  on  rather  thin  paper, 
but  with  those  two  conditions  it  can  be  a  wholly  satisfac- 
tory form  of  adornment.  The  modern  fashion  of  print- 
ing books  on  paper  like  cardboard  is  utterly  destructive 
of  any  of  the  three  classes  of  decoration  treated  in  this 
paper. 


APPENDIX  IV. 

EARLY  DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  CRAFT. 

IN  the  Accounts  of  Piers  Courteys,  Keeper  of  the 
King's  Great  Wardrobe  in  the  City  of  London  between 
the  8th  April  and  the  29th  of  September  1480,  20  Edw. 
IV.,  are  the  following  disbursements  : — 

And  to  ALICE  CLAVER  for  the  makyng  of  xvj  laces 
and  xvj  tasshels  for  the  garnysshing  of  divers  of  the 
Kinges  bookes  ij"  viijd ;  and  to  Robert  Boillett  for  blac[k] 
papir  and  nailles  for  closyng  and  fastenyng  of  divers 
cofyns  from  the  Kinges  grete  Warderobe  in  London  unto 
Eltham  aforesaid  vd ;  PIERS  BAUDUYN  stacioner  for  bynd- 
ing  gilding  and  dressing  of  a  booke  called  Titus  Livius 
xxs  for  binding  gilding  and  dressing  of  a  booke  of  The 

p  2 


212       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Holy  Trinite  xvj8 ;  for  binding  gilding  and  dressing  of 
a  booke  called  FRO[I]SSARD  xvj8  for  binding  gilding  and 
dressing  of  a  booke  called  the  Bible  xvj8  for  binding, 
gilding,  and  dressing  of  a  booke  called  Le  Gouvernement 
of  Kings  and  Princes  xvj8  for  binding  and  dressing  of 
thre  smalle  bookes  of  Frenche  price  in  grete  vj8  viijd ; 
for  the  dressing  of  ij  bookes  whereof  oon  is  called  La 
Forteresse  de  Foy  and  the  other  called  The  Book  of 
Josephus  iij8  iiijd;  and  for  binding  and  gilding  and 
dressing  of  a  booke  called  The  Bible  Historial  xxs. 

(Privy  Purse  Expenses  of  Elizabeth  of  York  :  Wardrobe 
accounts  of  Edward  the  Fourth.  Edited  by  Sir  H.  N. 
Nicolas,  pp.  125-6.  Ed.  1830.) 


Thomas  Berthelet's  Bill,  as  King's  Printer,  for 
Books  sold  and  bound,  and  for  Statutes  and 
Proclamations  furnished  to  the  Government  in 
I54I—43- 

This  document  is  a  schedule,  in  the  form  of  a  small 
quarto  book  of  twelve  leaves  of  paper,  annexed  to  a 
parchment  warrant  under  the  royal  sign  manual  of 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       213 

Henry  VIII.,  directing  payment  thereof  to  be  made  by  the 
treasurer  of  the  Court  of  Augmentations.  The  schedule 
is  written  by  the  same  hand  as  the  warrant ;  but  on  the 
latter  is  a  receipt  or  discharge,  written  by  Berthelet 
himself,  29  September,  35  Hen.  VIII  [1543],  four  days 
after  the  date  of  the  warrant. 

The  reader  cannot  fail  to  notice  how  numerous  copies 
of  biblical  and  theological  books  occur,  as  provided  or 
bound  for  the  King  ;  among  the  former  are  the  New 
Testament,  printed  in  English  and  Latin,  and  among 
the  latter,  the  commentaries  of  the  King's  "favorite 
author,"  Thomas  Aquinas,  and  the  Institution  of  a 
Christian  Man.  The  prices  and  bindings  of  these 
various  works  are  highly  interesting. 

Much  of  the  bill  relates  to  statutes  and  proclamations 
printed  for  the  King.  The  statutes  were,  at  that  time, 
promulgated  in  the  form  of  proclamations ;  and  this 
ancient  practice  is  not  a  little  illustrated  by  the  particular 
instances  stated  in  Berthelet's  bill.  On  this  subject,  the 
introduction  to  the  authentic  edition  of  the  Statutes  of 
the  Realm,  published  by  the  Record  Commissioners, 
may  be  consulted  (Chap.  V.  §  2),  in  the  Appendix  to 
which  is  given  a  list  of  old  statutes  printed  by  the  several 


214       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

King's  printers,  wherein  Berthelet's  name  occurs  almost 
constantly  from  1509  to  1546. 

In  addition  to  the  autographs  of  the  King  and  his 
printer,  the  document  bears  the  signature  of  Sir  Thomas 
Audley,  chancellor,  at  the  end  of  the  bill. 

By  the  King. 

Henry  Rex. 

We  wolle  and  commaunde  you  that  of  suche  our 
Treausour  as  in  your  handes  remayneth  ye  doe  ymedyatly 
upon  the  sighte  herof  pay  or  doe  to  be  paide  unto  our 
trustie  servaunte  Thomas  Berthelett  our  prynter  the 
somme  of  one  hundred  seventene  poundes  sixepence  and 
one  halfepeny  sterlyng.  The  whiche  is  due  and  owyng 
by  us  unto  hym  for  certeyne  parcelles  delyvered  by  the 
seid  Thomas  unto  us  and  other  at  our  commaundement 
as  in  this  booke,  whereunto  this  our  present  warraunte 
is  annexed  particularly  dothe  appere.  And  these  our 
lettres  signed  with  our  hande  shalbe  unto  you  a  suf- 
fycient  warraunte  and  discharge  for  the  same.  Yoven 
under  our  Signemanuell,  at  our  Manour  of  Wodstooke, 
the  xxiiijtj  of  September,  the  xxxv  yere  of  our  reigne. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       215 

To  our  right  trustie  and  righte  welbeloved  Sr* 
Edward  Northe,  Knyghte,  treausourer  of  thaugmen- 
taciouns  of  the  Revenues  of  our  Crowne. 

Receyved  of  sir  Edward  North,  Knight,  treasourer 
of  the  Augmentations,  the  sayd  summe  of  one 
hundred  seventene  poundes  vj.  d.  ob.  according  to 
the  tenour  of  this  warrant,  the  29  day  September, 
a*  regni  regis  Henrid  viij,  xxxv. 

Per  me  Thomam  Bertheletum. 

Anno  Domini  1541,  et  anno  regni  serenissimi  et 
invictissimi  Regis  Henrici  Octavi,  Dei  gratia  Anglie 
Francie  et  Hibernie  Regis,  fidei  Defensoris,  et  in 
terra  Ecclesie  Anglicane  et  Hibernice  Supremi 
Capitis,  tricesimo  tercio. 


In  primis,  delyvered  to  my  Lorde  Chauncellour,  the 
Ixth  day  of  December,  xxt!  Proclamacons  made  for  the 
enlargyng  of  Hatfeld  Chace,  printed  in  fyne  velyme,  at 
vjd-  the  pece.  Summa,  los. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xxx  day 
of  December,  a  Newe  Testament  in  englisshe  and  latyn, 
of  the  largest  volume,  price  35. 


216       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  vj  day  of 
January,  a  Psalter  in  englisshe  and  latyne,  covered  with 
crimoysyn  satyne,  2$. 

Item  delyvered  the  same  tyme,  a  Psalter,  the  Proverbes 
of  Salomon,  and  other  smalle  bookes  bounde  together, 
price  i6d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hygnes,  for  a  litle 
Psalter,  takyng  out  of  one  booke  and  settyng  in  an  other 
in  the  same  place,  and  for  gorgious  byndyng  of  the  same 
booke,  xijdt  and  to  the  Goldesmythe,  for  taking  of  the 
claspes  and  corner,  and  for  settyng  on  the  same  ageyne 
xvjd>  Summa  2$.  ^d. 

Item  delyvered  unto  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xv  day 
of  January,  a  New  Testament  in  latyne,  and  a  Psalter 
englisshe  and  latyne,  bounde  backe  to  backe,  in  white 
leather,  gorgiously  gilted  on  the  leather ;  the  bookes 
came  to  ijs>  the  byndyng  and  arabaske  drawyng  in  golde 
on  the  transfile,  iiijs-  Summa  6s. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xviij  day  of 
January,  a  booke  called  Enarradones  Evangeliorum 
Dommicalium,  bounde  in  crymosyn  satyne;  the  price 

3*-  4^- 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hig[h]nes,  the  xxiij  day 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       217 

of  January,  a  booke  of  the  Psalter  in  englisshe  and 
latyne,  the  price  viijd- ;  and  a  booke  entiteled  Enarrationes 
Evangeliorum  Dominicalium,  the  price  xijdi ;  and  for  the 
gorgious  byndyng  of  them,  backe  to  backe,  iij8'  iiijd* 
Summa  $s. 

Item  delyvered  to  Maister  Hynwisshe,  to  the  Kinges 
use,  a  paper  booke  of  vj  queres  royall,  gorgiously  bounde 
in  leather  is.  6d. 

Item  delyvered  to  my  Lorde  Chauncellour,  the  xxv  day 
of  January,  vjc  Proclamacions  concernyng  the  Kinges 
stile ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  one  leafe  of  bastarde 
paper,  at  jd>  the  pece.  Summa  50$. 

Item  delyvered  to  my  Lorde  Chauncellour,  the  iiij  day 
of  February,  vjc*  Proclamacions  concernyng  eatyng  of 
whyte  meates ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  one  hole  leafe 
of  Jene  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece,  25*. 

Item  delyvered  the  xxvth  day  of  February,  to  the 
Kinges  hyghnes,  Ambrosius  super  epistolas  sancti  Pauli 
xxd. 

Item  one  Psalter  in  englisshe,  in  viij°  xxd 

Item  ij  litle  Psalters,  xvjdl     Summa  $s.  &d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  laste  day 
of  February,  xij  bookes  intitled  Summaria  [in]  Evangelia 


2i8       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

et  Epistolas  ut  leguntur,  ij  bounde  in  paper  hordes  at 
viijd>  the  pece,  and  x  in  forrelles,  at  vjd  the  pece, 
6s.  ^d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  iij  day  of 
Marche,  one  Summaria  in  Evangelia  et  Epistolas,  gor- 
giously  bounde,  and  gilte  on  the  leather,  price  2$. 

Item  delyvered  the  same  day,  ij  bookes,  intitled 
Condliaciones  locorum  Althemeri,  price  45. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  same  day, 
one  Opus  Zmaragdi,  price  45.  Sd. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  vtb  day  of 
Marche,  one  Novum  Testamentum,  bounde  with  a  Sum- 
maria, price  2s.  » 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  ix  day 
of  Marche,  one  Novum  Testamentum,  in  latyne,  bounde 
with  a  Summaria  super  Epistolas  et  Evangelia,  zs. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xij*  day  of 
Marche,  one  Authoritas  allegabiles  sacre  scripture, 
with  one  Summaria  in  Evangelia  et  Epistolas,  gor- 
giously  bounde  in  whyte,  and  gilte  on  the  lether,  iiij 
Item,  Sedulius  in  Paulum,  at  iij8'  Item,  Petrus  Lum- 
berdus  in  Epistolas  sancti  fault,  at  iijs  iiijd*  Item, 
Hometie  ven.  Bede  in  Epistolas  Dominicalis,  at  xvjd<  Item, 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       219 

Questiones  Hugonis  super    Epistolas    sancti  Fault,   ijs. 
Summa  13^.  8d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  Maiestie,  the  xv  day 
of  Marche,  Thomas  de  Aquino,  in  Evangelia  Dominicalia, 
et  Homelie  Bede,  una  ligati  cum  alijs  ;  price  zs.  8d. 

Item,  Psalterium  in  latyne,  and  a  Psalter  in  englisshe, 
una  legati ;  price  zs.  8d. 

Item,  Arnobius  super  psalmos,  25. 

Item,  Hay  mo  super  psalmos,  zs. 

Item,  Jo.  de  Turre-cremata  super  Evangelia,  zs.  8d. 

Item,  Omelia  Haymonis  super  Evangelia,  i6d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xvj  day  of 
Marche,  one  Arnobius  super  Psalterium,  bounde  with 
other  bookes,  zs. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xviij  day  of 
Marche,  one  Arnobius  super  Psalterium,  and  one  Psalter 
in  englisshe,  price  zs.  8d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xix  day  of 
Marche,  .ffb»«7/<?  Bede  hyemales,  bounde  with  his  Homilijs 
on  the  Pistles,  price  zs.  8d. 

Item,  Homilie  Bede  aestivales,  \  bound  alone,  price 
zod. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xxiij  day  of 


220       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Marche,  Homelie  Bede  pars  estivalis,  bounde  with  his 
Homilies  on  the  Epistoles,  price  2s.  %d. 

Item  the  same  day,  delyvered  to  his  grace,  Enarradones 
sancti  Thome  de  Aquino  super  Evangelia,  bounde  with 
Homilijs  Bede  super  Epistolas,  the  price  2$.  &d. 


Anno  Domini  1542. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xxvtl  day 
of  Marche,  one  Psalter  in  latyne  of  Colines  printe,  and 
one  in  englisshe,  bounde  together;  the  price  ijs  viiijd* 
Item,  Arnobius  super  Psalterium^  and  a  Psalter  in 
englisshe,  bound  together,  price  ij"  viijd<  Item,  San\c\tus 
Thomas  de  Aquino  super  Matheum,  the  price  ijs>  Summa 
6*.  8d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xxvij  day  of 
Marche,  one  Cathena  aurea  divi  Thome  de  Aquino  in 
Evangelia  Dominicalia,  price  ij  iiijdl 

Item  the  same  day  delyvered  to  his  hyghnes,  one 
Postilla  Guilielmi  Par[zs]iensi's,  price  ijs<  Summa  5*.  4^. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xxviij  day 
of  Marche,  one  Enarradones  sancti  Thome  de  Aquino  in 
Evangelia  Dominicalia,  with  Homilijs  ven.  Bede  in 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       221 

Epistolas  ut  per  totum  annum  leguntur  in  templis  ;  price 
ijs  viijdl  Item,  Psalterium  in  latine,  with  Arnobius  super 
Psalmos  ;  the  price  ijs  viijd>  Item,  Faber  super  Epistolas 
Catholicas,  the  price  xxd>  Item,  Dydimus  Alexandrianus, 
with  Beda  upon  the  Epistolas  Catholicas,  price  ijs-  Item, 
one  Catanus  super  Evangelia,  price  iijs-  iiijd-  Summa 

I2S. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xxx  day  of 
Marche,  one  Cathena  Aurea  divi  Thome  super  Evangelia 
in  duobus,  price  5^. 

Item  delyvered  the  same  day  to  his  grace,  one 
Dionysius  Carth.  ;  and  a  Faber  Stampe  super  Epistolas 
Catholicas,  price  3$. 

Item  delyvered  the  same  day,  one  Dydimus  Alex- 
andrinus,  and  Beda  super  Epistolas  Catholicas,  price  zs. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  ij  day  of 
Aprill,  one  Thomas  de  Aquino  in  Evangelia  Dominicalia, 
and  Beda  super  Epistolas,  bounde  together,  price  zs.  %d. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  same  day, 
one  Homilie  Johannis  Chrysostomi  in  Matheum,  the 
price  zs. 

Item,  one  Homilie  Jo.  Chrysostomi  in  Johannem  Mar- 
ciim  et  Lucam,  price  zs.  $d. 


222       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  xj'  day  of 
Aprill,  Dionysium  Carthus.  in  Evang.  in  viij,  bounde  in 
ij,  price  5*. 

Item  delyvered  the  same  day,  to  my  Lorde  Chaun eel- 
lour  of  England,  iiijc  Proclamacions  concernyng  stealyng 
of  haukes  egges,  and  kepying  of  soure  haukes  ;  eche  con- 
teynyng  a  leafe  of  basterde  paper,  at  jd  the  pece.  Summa 

35*- 

Item  delyvered  to  my  Lorde  Chauncellour  the  xvj  day 
of  Aprill,  iiijc  Proclamacions  concernyng  stealing  of 
haukes  egges,  and  kepyng  of  soure  haukes  ;  eche  of  them 
conteynyng  a  hole  leaffe  of  Jene  paper  at  ob.  the  pece. 
Summa  i6.y.  %d. 

Item  for  iiijc  of  the  same,  that  were  new  made  ageyne, 
at  ob.  the  pece.  Summa  i6s.  8d. 

Item  delyvered  to  my  Lorde  Chauncellour  of  England, 
the  xx  day  of  Aprill,  all  these  Actes  followying,  printed  in 
Proclamacions ;  that  is  to  wete,  vc  of  the  Acte  concern- 
yng counterfeit  lettres  or  privie  tokens,  to  receyve  money 
or  goodes  in  other  mens  handes;  eche  of  them  con- 
teynyng a  leaffe  of  Jene  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece,  2os.  io</. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Actes  concernyng  bying  of 
fisshe  upon  the  see  ;  cache  of  them  conteynyng  one  hole 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       223 

leaffe  of  basterde   paper,   at    jd*  the    pece.       Summa 
41  s.  Sd. 

Item  delyvered  ijc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  foldyng  of 
clothes  in  North  Walles,  eche  of  them  conteynyng  halfe  a 
leaffe  of  basterde  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece.  Summa  Ss.  ^d. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  pewterers ;  eche  of 
them  conteynyng  one  hole  leaffe  of  basterde  paper,  at  jd  • 
ob.  the  pece.  Summa  3/.  25.  6d. 

Item  c  of  the  Acte  concernyng  kepyng  of  greate 
horsses ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  ij  hoole  leafes  of  bas- 
terde paper,  at  ijd>  the  pece.  Summa  4/.  3*.  4^. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  crossboues  and 
hande  gonnes  ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  iij  holle  leaves 
dim.  of  basterde  paper  at  iijd*  ob.  the  pece.  Summa 
7/.  5-y.  lod, 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  the  conveyaunce  of 
brasse,  latene,  and  bell  mettall  over  the  see ;  eche  of 
them  conteynyng  one  holle  leafe  of  basterde  paper,  at  jd> 
the  pece.  Summa  41$.  8d. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  ageynst  conjuracions,  witchecraftes, 
sorcery,  and  inchauntementes  ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng 
one  holle  leafe  of  Jene  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece.  Summa 
2  os.  iod. 


224       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  mayntenaunce  of  artillarie, 
debarryng  unlaufull  games ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng 
iiij  holle  leaves  of  basterde  paper,  at  iiijd<  the  pece. 
Summa  8/.  6.r.  8d. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  the  execucion  of 
certeyne  Statutes;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  iij  hoole 
leaves  dim.  of  bastarde  paper,  at  iijd*  ob.  the  pece. 
Summa  7/.  55.  tod. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  for  bouchers  to  selle  at  their  libertie, 
by  weyghte  or  otherwise  ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  one 
holle  leafe  of  basterde  paper,  at  idt  the  pece.  41  s.  &/. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  for  murdre  and  malicius  bloud- 
shed  within  the  Courte;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  iij 
hole  leaves  dim.  of  basterde  paper  at  iijd-  ob.  the  pece. 
Summa  7/.  5^.  io<£ 

Item  xij  of  the  Acte  concernyng  certeyne  Lordships, 
translated  from  the  Countie  of  Denbigh  to  the  Countie 
of  Flynt ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  one  hoolle  leaffe  of 
basterde  paper,  at  jd>  the  pece.  Summa  i2d- 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  false  prophesies  upon 
declaracion  of  armes,  names,  or  badges ;  eche  of  them 
conteynyng  a  dim.  leafe  of  basterde  paper,  at  ob.  the 
pece,  2os. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        225 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  the  translation  of  the 
saynctuarie  from  Manchestere  to  Westechester ;  eche  of 
them  conteynyng  one  hoolle  leaffe  dim.  of  basterde 
paper,  at  jd  ob.  the  pece.  Summa  3/.  2s.  6d. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  for  worsted  yarne  in  Northefolke ; 
eche  of  them  conteynyng  a  hoolle  leaffe  of  basterde  paper, 
at  jd  the  pece.  Summa  41.$-.  8d. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  for  confirmacion  and  continuacion 
of  certeyne  Actes ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  one 
hoolle  leafe  of  basterde  paper,  at  jd>  the  pece.  Summa 
4is.  Sd. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  true  making  of  kerseyes ; 
«che  of  them  conteynyng  one  holle  leafe  dim.  of  basterde 
paper,  at  jd  ob.  the  pece.  Summa  3/.  zs.  6d. 

Item  vc  of  the  Acte  expondyng  a  certeyn  Statute  con- 
cernyng the  shippyng  of  clothes ;  eche  of  them  con- 
teynyng a  dim.  leafe  of  basterde  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece. 
Summa  20$.  lod. 

Item  for  the  byndyng  of  ij  Primmers,  written  and 
•covered  with  purple  velvet,  and  written  abowte  with 
golde,  at  iij6  the  pece.  Summa  65. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  vj  day  of 
Maye,  xij  of  the  Statutes  made  in  the  Parliament  hold  en 

Q 


226       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

in  the  xxxiij11  yere  of  his  moste  gracious  reigne  ;  at  xvjd 
the  pece.     Summa  i6s. 

Item  delyvered  to  Mr.  James,  Maister  Denes  servaunte, 
for  the  Kinges  hyghnes  use,  the  xvjth  day  of  Maye,  a 
greate  booke  of  paper  imperiall,  bound  after  the  facion 
of  Venice,  price  15*. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  seid  Maister  James,  for  the 
Kinges  hyghnes  use,  another  greate  booke  of  paper 
imperiall,  bounde  after  the  Italian  fascion,  the  price,  14$. 

Item  delyvered  the  xiiij  day  of  June,  to  Maister 
Daniell,  servaunte  to  Maister  Deny,  to  the  Kinges 
hyghnes  use,  ij  bookes  of  paper  royall,  bounde  after  the 
Venecian  fascion,  the  price,  iSs. 

It  delyvered  to  Maister  Secretory,  Maister  Wrysley, 
the  v  day  of  November,  iij  dosen  bookes  of  the 
Declaracion  of  the  Kinges  hyghnes  title  to  the  soverayntie 
of  Scotland,  at  iiijd  the  pece.  Summa  12*. 

Item  delyvered  to  Maister  Jones,  servaunte  to  Maister 
Deny,  the  xxx  daye  of  December,  v  Tullius  de  Officijs, 
bounde  in  paper  bourdes,  at  xvjd  the  pece,  and  one 
gorgiously  gilted  for  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  price  iijs  iiijd. 
Summa,  ios. 

Item   for  byndyng  of  a  paper  booke  for  the  Kinges 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       227 

hyghnes,  and  the  gorgious  giltyng  thereof,  delyvered  the 
xiiij  day  of  January  to  Mr.  Turner,  35.  ^d. 

Item  delyvered  to  Maister  Hynnige,  for  the  Kinges 
hyghnes  use,  the  vij  day  of  Febr.  a  greate  paper  booke 
of  royall  paper,  bounde  after  the  Venecian  fascion,  price 
8* 

Item  delyvered  the  ix  day  of  February,  to  my  Lorde 
Chauncellour,  vjc  of  the  Proclamacions  for  white  meates, 
at  ob.  the  pece,  25^. 

Item  delyvered  the  vj  day  of  Marche,  iij  bookes  of 
"  The  Institution  of  a  xp'en  man,"  made  by  the  clergy, 
unto  the  Kinges  most  honerable  Counsayll  at  xxd  the 
pece,  5*. 

Anno  Domini  1543. 

Item  delyvered  the  vj  day  of  Aprill,  to  Maister  Henry 
Knyvett,  for  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  a  bridgement  of  the 
Statutes,  gorgiously  bounde,  5*. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  moost  honerable  Coun- 
saill,  the  viiij  day  of  Aprill,  iij  litle  bookes  of  the 
Statutes,  price  xijd.  Item  iij  bookes  of  the  vj  Articles, 
price  vjd.  Item  iij  of  the  Proclamacions  ageynst  Ana- 

Q  2 


228       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

baptistes,  price  vjd.  Item  iij  Proclamacions  of  ceremones, 
price  vjd.  Item  iij  of  the  Injunctions,  price  vjd.  Item 
iij  of  holy  dayes,  price  iijd.  Summa,  3$.  $d. 

Item  delyvered  to  my  Lorde  Chauncellour  of  England, 
the  iiij  daye  of  Maye,  ijc  Proclamacions  concernyng  the 
price  of  suger,  conteynyng  one  hole  leafe  of  basterde 
paper,  at  jd-  the  pece.  Summa,  i6s.  8d. 

Item  for  the  byndyng  of  a  booke  written  on  vellim,  by 
Maister  Turner,  covered  with  blacke  velvet,  i6d. 

Item  delyvered  to  my  lorde  Chauncellor,  the  xxxj 
day  of  Maye,  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  advauncement  of 
true  religion  and  abolisshment  of  the  contrarie,  made 
out  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  iii  leaves 
dim.  of  greate  basterde  paper,  at  iijd.  ob.  the  pece. 
Summa,  7/.  $s.  lod. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  explanacion  of 
the  statutes  of  willes,  made  out  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche 
of  them  conteynyng  iii  leaves  of  great  basterd  paper,  at 
iijd.  the  pece.  Summa,  6s.  $d. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  agaynst  suche  parsones 
as  doe  make  bankeruptes,  made  out  in  Proclamacions, 
eche  of  them  conteynyng  two  greate  leaves  of  basterde 
paper,  at  ijd.  the  pece.  Summa,  4/.  3*.  4^. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       229- 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  preservacion  of 
the  ryver  of  Severne,  made  oute  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche 
of  them  conteynyng  two  small  leaves  of  paper,  at  jd.  the 
pece  ;  41  s.  %d. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  concernyng  collectours 
and  receyvours,  made  out  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche  of 
them  conteyning  a  leafe  dim.  of  paper,  at  jd.  the  pece. 
Summa,  41$.  %d. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  true  making  of 
coverlettes  in  Yorke,  made  oute  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche 
of  them  conteyning  ij  smalle  leaves  of  paper,  at  jd.  the 
pece.  Summa,  41$.  8^. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  assise  of  cole  and 
woode,  made  owt  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche  of  them  con- 
teynyng a  leafe  of  smalle  paper,  at  ob,  the  pece.  Summa, 


Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte,  that  persons,  beyng  noe 
common  surgions,  may  mynistre  outwarde  medycines, 
made  oute  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng 
a  leafe  of  smalle  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece.  Summa, 

2OS.    lOd. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  to  auctorise  certeyne  of 
the  Kinges  majesties  counsaill  to  sett  prices  upon  wines  ; 


230       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

made  out  in  Proclamacions,  eche  of  them  conteynyng 
a  leafe  of  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece.     Summa,  2os.  lod. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  true  making  of 
pynnes,  made  out  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche  of  them  con- 
teynyng halfe  a  leafe  of  paper,  at  ob.  the  pece.  Summa, 
los.  $d.  \d. 

Item  delyvered  vc  of  the  Acte  for  the  true  making  of 
frises  and  cottons  in  Wales,  made  oute  in  Proclamacions  ; 
eche  of  them  conteynyng  a  leafe  of  paper,  at  ob.  the 
pece.  Summa,  zis.  Sd. 

Item  delyvered  fiftie  of  the  Acte  for  pavying  of 
certeyne  lanes  and  stretes  in  London  and  Westm.,  made 
out  in  Proclamacions  ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  ij  leaves 
of  smalle  paper,  at  jd.  the  pece,  45.  2d. 

Item  delyvered  fiftie  of  the  Acte  for  knyghtes  and 
burgeses  to  have  places  in  the  parliament,  for  the  county- 
palantyne  and  citie  of  Chester,  made  out  in  Proclama- 
cions ;  eche  of  them  conteynyng  a  leaffe  of  smalle  paper, 
at  ob.  the  pece  ;  2$.  id. 

Item  delyvered  fourtie  bookes  of  the  Acte  for 
certeyne  ordenaunces  in  the  Kinges  majesties  dominion 
and  principalitie  of  Wales,  at  iiijd<  the  pece.  Summa 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       231 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  highnes,  the  firste  day 
of  June,  xxiiij  bookes  intitled  "A  necessary  doctrine  for 
any  Christen  man,"  at  xvjd.  the  pece.  Summa,  32^. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  highnes,  the  third  day  of 
June,  xxiiij  bookes  intitled  "A  necessary  doctrine  for  any 
Christen  man,"  at  xvjd  the  pece.  Summa,  325. 

Item  delyvered  to  the  Kinges  hyghnes,  the  iiij  day  of 
June,  xxiiij  of  the  booke  intitled  "  A  necessary  doctryne 
for  any  Christen  man,"  at  xvjd  the  pece.  Summa,  32^. 

Item  delyvered  to  Maister  Stokeley,  the  xij  day  of 
June,  xij  Proclamacions  for  the  advancement  of  true 
religion,  at  iijd.  ob.  the  pece ;  3-r.  6d. 

Item  xx  of  the  Proclamacions  of  the  Acte  for  explana- 
cion  of  the  statute  of  willes,  at  iijd.  the  pece.  Summa, 

5* 

Item  xj  proclamacions  of  the  Acte  of  bankerupte,  at 

ijd.  the  pece.     Summa,  y.  $d. 

Item  xx  Proclamacions  of  the  Acte  for  Severne,  at  jd. 
the  pece.  Summa,  zod. 

Item  xx  Proclamacions  of  the  Acte  of  collectours  and 
receyvours,  at  jd.  the  pece,  2od. 

Item  xx  Proclamacions  of  the  Acte  for  making  of 
coverlettes  in  Yorke,  at  jd.  the  pece.  Summa,  2od. 


232       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING 

Item  xx  of  the  Proclamations,  that  persones  beyng  noe 
comon  surgions  may  ministre  outewarde  medicynes,  at 
ob.  thepece.  Summa,  iod. 

Item  xx  Proclamations  of  the  Acte  for  certeyne  of  the 
Kinges  maiesties  counsaill  to  sett  prices  of  wynes  ;  at  ob. 
the  pece.  Summa,  lod. 

Item  xx  Proclamations  of  the  Acte  for  true  making  of 
pynnes,  at  qa  the  pece,  $d. 

Item  xx  Proclamacions  of  the  Acte  for  true  making  of 
frises  and  cottons  in  Wales  ;  at  ob.  the  pece.  Summa, 


Summa  totalis,  cxvij//.  v']d.  ob. 
THOMAS  AUDELEY. 

Cancellarius. 

The  original  MS.  of  this  account  was  purchased  by  the 
British  Museum  in  1870.  Mr.  Arber  has  reprinted  it  in 
his  Records  of  the  Stationers'  Company,  and  states  that 
the  amount  of  the  account  is  equal  to  ^1,200  of  present 
money. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       233 


AN   ACTE   CONCERNING   PRINTERS   AND   BINDERS 
OF   BOOKES. 

Where  as  by  the  provision  of  a  Statute  made  in  the 
firste  yere  of  the  reygne  of  Kynge  Richarde  the  thirde,  it 
was  provided  in  the  same  acte,  that  all  straungers  repayr- 
yng  into  this  realme,  might  lawfully  bring  into  the  saide 
realme  painted  and  written  bokes  to  sell  at  their  libertie 
and  pleasure.  By  force  of  which  provision  there  hath 
comen  into  this  realme  sithen  the  makynge  of  the  same, 
a  marveilous  number  of  printed  bookes  and  dayly  doth. 
And  the  cause  of  the  making  of  the  same  provision 
semeth  to  be,  for  that  there  were  but  few  bookes  and 
fewe  printers  within  this  realme  at  that  time,  whiche  could 
well  exercise  and  occupie  the  said  science  and  crafte  of 
printynge  :  Neverthless,  sithen  the  making  of  the  saide 
provision,  many  of  this  realme,  being  the  Kinges  naturall 
subjectes,  have  given  them  so  diligently  to  lerne  and 
exercise  the  saide  craft  of  printinge,  that  at  this  day  there 
be  within  this  realme  a  great  number  of  connyng  and 
experte  in  the  said  science  or  crafte  of  printinge  as  able 
to  exercise  the  saide  crafte  in  all  pointes,  as  any  straunger 


234       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

in  any  other  realme  or  countrie.  And  furthermore  where 
there  be  a  great  numbre  of  the  Kinges  subjectes  within 
this  realme,  whiche  live  by  the  crafte  and  misterie  of 
binding  of  bookes,  and  that  there  be  a  great  multitude 
wel  expert  in  the  same  :  yet  all  this  not  withstandinge 
there  are  divers  persons  that  bringe  from  beyonde  the 
sea  great  plentie  of  printed  bookes,  not  onely  in  the 
Latin  tongue,  but  also  in  our  maternall  engiishe  tongue, 
some  bounde  in  bourdes,  some  in  lether,  and  some  in 
parchiment,  and  them  sell  by  retayle,  wherby  many  of 
the  Kinges  subjectes,  being  binders  of  bookes,  and 
havinge  none  other  facultie  wherwith  to  get  their  livinge, 
be  destitute  of  worke,  and  like  to  be  undone  :  except 
some  reformacion  herin  be  had.  Be  it  therefore  enacted 
by  the  Kinge  our  soveraigne  lorde,  the  lordes  spirituall 
and  temporall,  and  the  comons  in  this  present  parlia- 
ment assembled,  and  by  auctoritie  of  the  same,  that 
the  said  proviso,  made  the  first  yere  of  the  said  King 
Richarde  the  thirde,  from  the  feast  of  the  nativitie  of 
our  lorde  god  next  commyng,  shall  be  voyde  and  of  none 
effecte. 

And  be  it  further  enacted  by  the  auctorite  afore  saide, 
that  no  person  or  persons  resiant  or  inhabitant  within 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       235 

this  realme,  after  the  saide  feast  of  Christmas  next 
coming,  shal  bie  to  sel  againe  any  printed  bookes 
brought  from  any  partes  out  of  the  Kinges  obeysance, 
redie  bounden  in  bourdes,  lether,  or  parchement,  upon 
peine  to  lose  and  forfaite  for  every  booke  bou(n)d  out  of 
the  saide  Kinges  obeisance,  and  brought  into  this 
realme,  and  bought  by  any  person  or  persons  within  the 
same  to  sell  againe  contrarie  to  this  Acte,  sixe  shillyng 
eight  pence. 

And  further  be  it  enacted  by  the  auctorite  aforesaide, 
that  no  person  or  persons  inhabitant  or  resiant  within 
this  realme,  after  the  saide  feaste  of  Christmas,  shall  bie 
within  this  realme,  of  any  straunger  borne  out  of  the 
Kinges  obedience  other  then  of  denizens,  any  maner  of 
printed  bookes  brought  from  any  the  parties  beyond 
the  sea,  except  only  by  engrose  and  not  by  retail ;  upon 
peine  of  forfaiture  of  vi  s  viii  d  for  every  boke  so  bought 
by  retaile,  contarie  to  the  fourme  and  effecte  of  this 
estatute,  the  said  forfaitures,  to  be  always  levied  of  the 
biers  of  any  suche  bookes,  contrarie  to  this  act  :  The  one 
halfe  of  all  the  said  forfaitures  to  be  to  the  use  of  our 
soveraigne  lorde  the  Kinge,  and  the  other  moitie  to  be 
to  the  partie  that  wyll  lease  or  sue  for  the  same  in  any 


236       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

of  the  Kinges  courtes,  be  it  by  bil,  plaint,  or  infor- 
macion,  wherein  the  defendant  shall  not  be  admitted  to 
wage  his  law,  nor  no  protection  ne  essoen  shall  be  unto 
him  allowed. 

Provided  alway  and  be  it  enacted  by  the  auctorite 
beforesaide,  that  if  any  of  the  saide  printers  or  sellers  of 
printed  bokes,  inhabited  within  this  realme  at  any  time 
hereafter  happen  in  such  wise  to  enhance  and  encreace 
the  prices  of  any  such  printed  bokes  in  sale  or  binding, 
at  to  highe  and  unreasonable  prices,  in  such  wise  as 
complaint  be  made  thereof  unto  the  Kinges  highnes, 
or  unto  the  lorde  chauncellour,  lorde  treasurer,  or 
any  of  the  chiefe  Justices  of  the  one  benche  or  of  the 
other :  that  then  the  same  lorde  chauncellour,  lorde 
Tresorer  and  ii  chief  Justices,  or  twoo  of  any  of  them, 
shall  have  power  and  auctoritee  to  enquire  thereof  as  well 
by  the  othes  of  xii  honest  and  discrete  persons,  as  other 
wyse  by  due  examinacion  by  their  discrecions.  And 
after  the  same  enhansing  and  encreasyng  of  the  saide 
prices  of  the  saide  bookes  and  binding  shall  be  so 
founde  by  the  said  xii  men,  or  otherwise  by  examinacion 
of  the  saide  lorde  chancellour,  lorde  tresorer,  and 
Justices,  or  two  of  them :  that  then  the  same  lorde 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        237 

chauncellour,  lorde  treasourer,  and  Justices,  or  two  of 
them  at  the  leaste,  from  time  to  time,  shall  have  power 
and  auctorite  to  reforme  and  redresse  suche  enhansyng  of 
the  prices  of  printed  bookes,  from  time  to  time  by  their 
discretions,  and  to  limit  prices  as  well  of  the  bookes  as 
for  the  bindyng  of  them  :  and  over  that  the  offender,  or 
offenders  thereof,  being  convict  by  the  examinacion  of 
the  same  lord  chauncellour,  lorde  tresourer  and  two 
justices  or  two  of  them,  or  otherwise,  shall  lose  and 
forfaite,  for  every  booke  by  them  solde,  whereof  the 
price  shall  be  inhaunsed,  for  the  booke  or  bindynge 
thereof  iii.  s.  iiii.  d.  the  one  halfe  thereof  shalbe  to 
the  Kinges  highnes,  and  the  other  halfe  unto  the  parties 
greeved,  that  will  complaine  upon  the  same,  in  maner 
.and  forme  before  rehersed. 

.EXTRACT  FROM  THE  EARLY  MINUTES  OF  THE  STATIONERS' 
COMPANY. 

Anno  xix°  Rie  Elizabeth 

1577 
xxi  October. 

At  a  Court  holden  this  same  daie  the  bookbinders 
being  pnt.  and  shewinge  their  griefs  and  the  Mr.  Wardens 


238       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

and  Assistants  with  the  rest  of  the  Liverie  beinge  pnt. 
and  hearing  the  same  it  was  ordered  by  assent  of  all 
the  said  parties  as  followeth  viz. 

i.  That  the  bookbinders  that  be  Inglishmen  and 
Freemen  of  this  Citie  shall  have  woork  before  strangers 
and  foryners  so  that  they  the  same  Freeman  that  be 
Inglishman  and  binders — shall  doo  their  woork  work- 
manlie  and  as  well  as  any  other  would  doo  it  and  at  as 
reasonable  rate  and  price  as  other  workmen  will  doo  the 
same  kinde  of  woork. 

ij.  Item  that  the  said  bookbinders  so  often  as  they 
or  any  of  them  shall  receyve  woorke  to  be  done  for  any 
person  shall  redelyuer  the  same  wrought  and  done  as  it 
ought  to  be  to  the  owners  thereof  at  ye  same  day  and 
tyme  that  was  appoynted  and  agreed  uppon  and  the 
receipt  thereof  betwene  the  parties  whom  ye  case  shall 
concern  or  win  iij  daies  then  next  following  att  ye 
furthest  unles  a  longer  respit  uppon  some  reasonable 
cause  shallbe  obteyned  of  the  owner  or  owners  thereof. 

iij.  Item  that  the  breakers  and  infringers  of  this  orde- 
nance  or  of  any  article  thereof  shall  for  every  such  his 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        239 

offence  suffer  such  punishment  by  imprisonment  or  other- 
wise as  to  ye  Mr.  and  Wardens  for  the  tyme  being  shalbe 
thought  meete. 

EXTRACT  FROM  STATIONERS'  RECORDS,  BOOK  A.  P.  50. 

xxv.  March,   1586. 

Upon  complaint  made  to  the  right  honable  the  lord 
maior  and  court  of  Aldermen  By  Willm.  Lobley,  John 
Oswald,  Edward  Day  and  divers  others  :  yt  was  ordered 
by  the  said  court,  That  the  Right  Worshipful  Mr.  Raffe 
Woodcocke,  Mr.  Cuthbert  Buckell,  Mr.  Henry  Byllingesley 
Aldermen  of  this  citie  Should  repaire  to  the  Stacon- 
ers'  Hall  in  London  there  to  examine  and  heare  such 
causes  as  should  be  brought  before  them  and  thereof 
to  make  certificat.  .  .  .  Thereupon  the  XXVth  day  of 
Marche  Ao.  dni  1586.  And  in  the  eight  and  twentieth 
yere  of  the  reign  of  our  souvergn  ladie  quene  Elizabeth ; 
Upon  the  hearinge  of  the  said  cause  by  the  said  Comyttees 
at  the  said  Hall,  yt  is  uppon  the  motion  of  the  said 
Comittees  and  by  assent  of  the  said  complaynantes  then 
and  there  ordered  and  decreed  as  followithe  viz. 

i.  Ffirst    concerninge    Stytchinge   of    bookes :    that 
there  shalbe  an  explanation  of  a  constitution  hereafter 


240       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

made  for  yt  purpose.  That  is  to  saye  That  no  Stationer 
nor  any  other  person  or  persons  occupyinge  the  trade  of 
bookesellinge,  bindinge,  ffoldinge,  or  Sowinge  of  Bookes, 
Shall  from  henceforth  binde,  sell,  utter,  or  putt  to  sale 
or  cause  to  be  bounde,  solde,  uttered  or  putt  to  sale,  any 
booke  in  any  volume  whatsoever  which  is  or  shalbe 
bored  or  prycked  thoroughe  with  Bodkyn,  Alle,  Needle, 
or  other  instrument,  and  stitched  with  Thryd,  Stryp 
of  Leather,  or  other  such  device,  but  such  onelie,  and 
none  other  as  shalbe  sowed  uppon  a  sowinge  presse 
as  heretofore  hath  been  accustomed,  containing  any 
greater  number  of  Sheetes  than  is  hereafter  expressed. 
That  is  to  say  in  the  volume  called  folio  there  maie  be 
bound  stytched  onelie  ffortie  Sheetes  and  not  aboue.  In 
the  volume  called  Octavo  twelve  Sheetes  onelie  and  not 
aboue.  And  in  the  volume  called  Decimo  Sexto  ffyve 
or  sixe  Sheetes  at  the  most  and  not  aboue,  uppon  paine 
of  such  forfaiture  as  in  the  said  constitution  ys  specified. 
Provyded  alwaies  that  this  constitution  or  explanacon 
or  any  thinge  therein  contained  shall  not  extend  to 
the  stytchinge  of  any  the  bookes  of  Statutes  not  con- 
teyninge  any  moe  Statutes  than  is  or  hereafter  shall 
be  decreed  or  published  at  any  one  Session  of  Plament. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       241 

But  that  suche  Statute  booke  may  be  stitched.     Any 
thinge  to  the  contrarie  notwithstandinge. 

2.  Item  that  no  person  or  persons   occupyinge    the 
facultie  of  bindinge,  sewinge  or  foldinge  of  booke  shall 
hyer  or  kepe  in  work  in  the  said  trade  of  Bookbyndinge, 
sewinge   or  foldinge  of  booke  any  person   or   persons 
other  than  his  or  their  apprentyces  of  the  malekinde 
only,  or  other  than  journeymen  freemen  of  this  citie,  or 
other  than  the  wyfe  or  children  of  the  said  Bynder  or 
sower  of  Books,  or  other  than  the  children  of  the  Wydow 
of  any  such  bynder  during  her  wydowhed  but  no  longer, 
uppon   payne   to    be    fyned    and    suffer    such    further 
punishment   as   by  the  mr.  wardens    and  assistants  or 
moore  pte  of  them  shalbe  thought  meete  and  reasonable. 

3.  Item  that  no  person  or  persons  being  a  bookseller 
and  occupyinge  the  trade  of  Retaylinge  and  Selling  of 
Books  Shall  putt  any  woork  That  is  to  saye  any  bookes 
unbounde,   to   be  bounde,   unto   or   by  any  fforrayner, 
Stranger,  or  to  any  other  person  whatsoever  that  are  not 
freeman  of  this  citie  contrarye  to  an  Acte  of  Comon 
counsell  therfore  provided  as  in  the  said  Acte  dothe  at 
large  appere  uppon    the    pain   and   paines  in  the  said 
Acte  conteined. 


Provided  always  that  if  any  of  the  companie  of 
Staconers  shalbe  charged  with  offendinge  the  said  Acte 
The  ptie  grieved  shall  first  make  his  complaint  thereof  to 
the  mr.  wardens  and  assistants  of  the  said  Companie  in 
open  court  in  their  hall  Who  thereuppon  shall  doo  their 
endevour  and  haue  power  and  authorytie  to  take  con- 
venient order  for  the  Removing  or  Redresse  of  the  offence. 
Or  yf  they  cannot  take  convenient  order  therein  then 
to  sett  the  ptie  grieved  at  libertie  to  prosecute  remedie 
in  yt  behalf  according  to  the  said  Act  in  case  the 
offender  or  offenders  will  not  stand  to  their  order.  Any- 
thinge  whatoseuer  to  the  contrarie  thereof  in  anywise 
notwithstanding^ 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.       243 


EXTRACT   FROM    MINUTES    OF    THE    COURT   MEETINGS    OF 

THE  STATIONERS'  COMPANY,  BOOK  F,  p.  2i8A. 

At  a  Court  holden  at  Stationers  Hall  on  Monday,  the 
ffourth  day  of  March,  Anno  Domini  1694. 
Present 

John  Sims,  Master. 


Henry  Mortlock,    ) 
Samuel  Loundes.    } 


Roger  Norton, 
John  Towse, 
Edw.  Brewster, 
Robert  Clavell, 
Thomas  Parkhurst, 
William  Phillips, 
William  Rawlings, 
George  Copping, 


i  A    •  .         ) 
)  Assistants.  \ 


Samuel  Heyrick, 
John  Richardson, 
Richard  Simpson, 

Richard  Chiswell, 
,,7  u     ^  .,  .„ 
Walter  Kettilly, 

William  Shrowsberry, 
Bennett  Griffien, 
Charles  Harper. 


A  Petition  of  severall  Bookbinders  representing  the 
lowe  condition  they  were  brought  by  the  lownesse  of 
prices  and  deareness  of  Lether  was  exhibited  at  this 
Court  beging  their  Approbation  to  a  table  of  Rates 
therewith  presented.  And  for  the  better  consideration 

R  2 


244        HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

thereof  Mr.  Brewster,  Mr.  Parkhurst,  Mr.  Clavell,  Mr. 
Simpson,  Mr.  Chiswell,  Mr.  Kettleby,  Mr.  Shrewsbury, 
and  Mr.  Harper  were  appointed  A  Committee  to  Assist 
the  Master  and  Wardens,  any  three  with  Mr.  and  one 
Warden  to  bee  of  the  Quorum  and  to  make  report  the 
next  generall  Court. 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        245 


A  REPORT   CONCERNYNG   THE    STATYONERS. 

To  the  right  honorable  Sir  HENRY  BILLINGSLEY 
Knight  Lord  Maior  of  the  Cittie  of  London  and  to 
ye  right  Worshipfull  the  Aldermen  his  bretheren. 

Most  humbly  shewe  and  beseach  your  good  Lordship 
and  worshippes  your  poore  suppliants  the  booke  binders 
of  the  Companie  of  Stationers  in  London  That  whereas 
vppon  a  former  Complaynte  made  in  the  tyme  of  Sir 
WOLSTON  DIXIE  Lord  Maior  [1585-6-7],  againste  ye  nom- 
bers  of  fforreyne[r]s  and  Straungers  then  intrudded  into 
the  trade  and  workes  of  your  poore  Suppliauntes  who 
humblie  craved  to  haue  the  benefitt  of  ye  Statute  vppon 
them  It  pleased  his  Lordship  upon  due  Consideracon 
of  your  suppliauntes  requeste  and  in  right  of  the 
freedome  to  appoynt  master  Alderman  WOODCOCK 
Alderman  BUCKLE  and  your  selfe  to  repaire  to  Sta- 
tioners Hall  and  there  to  examyn  here  and  certifie  such 
matters  As  should  be  brought  in  questyon  At  which 
tyme  and  place  the  Statute  was  graunted  for  your  Sup- 
pliauntes behoofe  But  the  master  and  wardens  of  the 
Companie  then  being  (for  some  respectes  to  themselues 


246       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

best  knowen)  Desired  a  stay  thereof  for  yat  they  would 
vndertake  to  see  our  cause  otherwise  redressed  which  for 
a  tyme  they  did  vntill  they  waxed  wearie  of  your  Sup- 
pliauntes  Complaintes  And  nowe  are  willing  the  statute 
should  be  putt  in  execucon  most  humblie  beseaching 
your  Lordship  and  worshippes  for  yat  the  nomber  of 
forreyne[r]s  are  more  encreased  since  then  before  through 
their  dailie  repaire  from  all  partes  of  the  realme  to 
London  your  Suppliauntes  also  beinge  in  nomber  fortie 
six  all  freemen,  taxable  to  their  companies  and  to  the 
Cittie,  and  as  sufficyent  for  their  skyll  As  any  forreyne[r] 
whatsoeuer  That  yt  maie  please  your  good  Lordship 
and  worshippes  to  vouchsafe  them  your  lawfull  favours  yf 
they  maie  haue  the  Statute  in  force  for  forreyne[r]s  As 
other  Companyes  haue  and  do  execute  Or  ellse  your  poore 
Suppliantes  shalbe  in  case  to  be  vtterly  ruynat[e]  and 
vndone  beseaching  the  Allmightie  to  blesse  your  honour 
and  worshippes  in  all  your  actions  and  affayres 

By  reason  of  which  peticon  your  Lordship  Appointed 
us  the  Committees  herevnder  named  to  heare  the  de- 
maundes  and  answeares  aswell  of  the  Stationers  as  of 
the  Alyens  yat  vse  the  trade  or  mistery  of  booke  bind- 
ing[:]  we  haue  had  e[a]ch  partie  before  vs  and  haue 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        247 

indifferently  heard  them,  And  we  do  certifie  your  Lord- 
ship and  worshippes  our  opinyons  therein  as  followeth 
viz*] 

Imprimis  wee  thincke  yt  meet  yat  those  Aliens  being 
Straungers  borne  owte  of  her  Maiesties  domynions/  being 
free  denizens  or  any  of  their  sons  that  be  at  this  daye 
householders  or  from  three  monethes  laste  paste,  should  for 
their  seuerall  lief  tymes  be  permytted  free  liberty  to  haue 
so  many  Apprentices  As  those  which  be  of  the  yeomanry 
of  the  Company  of  Stationers  which  Apprentices  shall 
first  become  bounde  to  a  freeman  of  the  Company  of 
Stationers  for  so  many  years  as  the  said  Straungers  borne 
or  Straungers  some  shall  agree  with  such  Apprentice  or 
his  freindes  for  And  the  said  Alien  or  straunger  shall  sett 
no  other  person  on  worke  in  yat  trade  of  booke  bindinge 
excepte  his  or  their  children  or  Jorneymen  free  of  the 
Company  of  Stationers  only  vppon  paine  to  loose 
the  benefitt  of  having  Apprentices  as  the  Companie 
haue  or  ought  to  haue  And  if  any  alien  Straunger 
borne  haue  at  this  presente  any  scrvaunt  that  is  bound 
apprentice  to  Anie  other  man  free  of  Anie  other  Com- 
pany then  of  the  Stationers  we  thincke  yt  reasonable  such 
Apprentice  or  Apprentices  do  become  bounde  Anewe  or 


248       HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

ellse  his  or  their  Indentures  to  beare  date  with  the  tyme 
that  they  now  do/  to  one  of  ye  Companie  of  Stationers 
free  of  this  Citty  to  th[e]end  yat  ye  trade  shalbe  not  be 
dispersed  into  more  Companyes  then  allready  it  is/ 

Item  we  thincke  yt  reasonable  yat  every  Alien  Straunger 
borne  being  Denizen  or  the  sonne  of  Any  Straunger 
whose  father  is  or  hath  bene  denizen  yat  hath 
served  Anie  of  the  Companie  of  Stationers  or  other 
Company  in  ye  trade  of  Bookebinding  As  a  Jorneyman 
for  wages  before  this  Daie  that  every  of  those  yat  so 
shalbe  founde  to  haue  served  as  a  Jorneyman  may  be  so 
permytted  during  his  or  their  lief  or  liefes  to  serve  As  a 
Jorneyman  And  not  to  be  further  permitted  to  keepe 
shoppe  or  shoppes  nor  inwardlie  to  worke  for  them 
selves  in  ye  trade  of  Bookebinding/ 

And  whereas  divers  of  her  Maiesties  Subiectes  haue 
served  their  Apprenticeshippes  in  other  Citties  or  townes 
within  this  realme  which  do  repayre  to  this  Citty  and 
are  sett  on  worke  by  sondry  persons  vsing  the  trade  of 
book  binding  aswell  free  of  the  Stationers  as  of  other 
Companies  to  the  great  hindrance  of  the  pore  workemen 
in  the  Company  of  Stationers  of  which  Company  Are 
verie  many  poore  men/ 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING.        249 

ffor  Avoyding  of  which  Inconvenyence  and  for  relief 
of  the  said  poorest  of  the  Company  of  Stationers  The 
premisses  considered  and  thought  good  to  be  graunted 
by  your  lordship  and  worshippes  wee  thincke  yt  can  no 
way  be  preiudiciall  that  the  Acte  of  Common  Councell 
made  for  restraynte  of  setting  forreyne[r]s  on  work  the 
firste  daie  of  Auguste  in  the  third  and  fourth  yeres  of 
Kinge  PHILIPP  and  Queene  MARY  may  from  henceforth 
be  again  in  force  As  when  the  same  was  first  made  And 
yat  some  Act  of  Common  Councell  might  be  made 
agreing  with  the  decree  made  in  ye  Starr  Chamber  for 
the  stinting  of  Apprentices  to  such  free  men  as  Do  vse 
that  trade  of  booke  binding  printinge  or  book  sellinge. 
THOMAS  BENNETT.  HENRY  ROWE. 

LEONARD  HOLLIDAY.          THOMAS  WILFORD. 

Which  report  being  read  in  this  Court  vas  verie  well- 
liked  and  allowed  of  And  therevppon  ordred  that  the 
same  shalbe  entered  into  the  Repertory  and  observed 
accordingly. 

[Repertory  z^fol,  132—133',  and  133— 133*] 

Mr.  Arber,  in  his  Transcript  of  the  Registers  of  the 
Company  of  Stationers  of  London  1554-1640,  says  : 
"  Most  of  the  smaller  publications  which  constituted  the 


250        HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  BOOKBINDING. 

majority  of  the  issues  from  the  press  were  published 
unbound,  or,  as  we  should  say,  'stitched.'  The  best 
binders,  as  indeed  all  the  printing  paper  down  to  about 
1588,  came  from  France.  As  the  larger  works  therefore 
only  as  a  rule  came  to  the  binders'  hands,  we  need  not 
be  surprised  at  there  being  in  1597  but  47  freeman 
binders  in  London,  and  they  too  apparently  belonging  to 
several  companies. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

A  CLASSIFIED  list  of  books  and  papers  relating  to  a 
subject  has  always  seemed  to  me  a  preliminary  step  to 
its  study.  I  have  therefore  endeavoured  to  do  for  bind- 
ing what  has  not  previously  been  done  even  in  France, 
where  alone  it  may  be  said  to  possess  a  literature. 

But  if  a  subject  catalogue  is  to  be  of  real  use  to  the 
student  it  must  be  exhaustive  as  far  as  it  goes — that  is  to 
say,  it  should  give  such  information  as  may  enable  him 
to  judge  of  the  scope  of  every  work  described  in  it,  as 
well  as  guide  him  in  its  purchase.  For  this  reason  I 
have  in  the  following  list  given  the  number  of  plates, 
pages,  and  editions,  besides  the  usual  information. 

The  list  does  not  pretend  to  be  a  complete  one  in 
certain  departments,  chiefly  in  French  and  German 
dictionary  and  magazine  articles.  There  are  so  many 
serial  publications  that  information  concerning  them 


252  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

could  only  be  obtained  by  prolonged  search  in  the  chief 
continental  libraries.  There  must  also  be  statutes  and 
notices  relating  to  the  craft  in  its  early  times  which  are 
yet  to  be  discovered. 

In  the  most  important  directions  I  believe  the  list  to  be 
fairly  complete,  but  what  I  desire  in  its  publication  is  that 
it  should  stimulate  those  interested  in  binding  at  home 
and  abroad  to  note  anything  that  has  escaped  my  search 
and  to  communicate  it  to  me,  in  order  that  later  on  the 
list  may  be  issued  in  a  form  still  more  exhaustive.  There 
may  be  many  things,  such  as  early  manuals  and  craft 
rules,  hidden  away  in  provincial  libraries  which  librarians 
may  come  across  from  time  to  time,  and  which  may 
possess  much  valuable  information  concerning  early 
English  binding. 

With  regard  to  the  arrangement  adopted  in  the  list,  it 
is  simply  alphabetical,  any  other  being  liable  to  cross 
classifications. 

Its  limitations  may  be  gathered  from  its  omissions.  I 
have  not  included  in  it : — 

(a)  Books  in  the  classical  languages  relating  to  the 
libraries  of  the  ancients. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  253 

(b)  Catalogues  of  ancient  or  modern  libraries,  except 

when  illustrated  or  prefaced  by  some  account 
of  binding. 

(c)  Catalogues  of  sales  or  dealers'  catalogues,  except 

when  illustrated. 

I  shall  be  glad  of  any  additions,  which  will  be  carefully 
set  aside  for  future  use. 

S.  T.  PRIDEAUX, 

37,  NORFOLK  SQUARE,  LONDON,  W. 


A  Statement  of  the  Causes  which  led  to  the  Present  Difference 
between  the  Master  and  Journeymen  Bookbinders  of  Edinburgh. 
Edinburgh,  1825.  Cr.  8vo. 

Acts  of  King  Henry  8th.  Contains  one  concerning  the  Craft  of 
Printers  and  Binders  of  Books.  London,  1562.  8vo. 

Adam  (Paul).  Systematisches  Lehr-  u.  Handbuch  der  Buchbin- 
derei  u.  der  damit  zusammenhangenden  Facher.  Pp.  999. 
775  Illustrations  in  text.  Dresden,  1886.  8vo. 

Adam  (Paul).  Der  Bucheinband,  seine  Technik  und  seine 
Geschichte.  Pp.  268.  194  Illustrations.  Leipzig,  1890.  8vo. 

Adam  (Paul).  Die  Kunst  des  Blinddrucks,  der  Handvergoldung 
und  der  Ledermosaik.  Pp.  60.  Illustrated.  Leipzig,  1892. 
4to. 

Adry  (Le  Pere).  Catalogue  chronologique  des  Imprimeurs  et 
Libraires  du  Roy.  Published  by  Le  Roux  de  Lincy.  Paris 
1849.  8vo. 

Allgemeiner  Anzeiger  fiir  Buchbindereien.  A  Trade  Journal 
Stuttgart.  Cr.  4to. 


254  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

All  the  Year  Round.  Vol.  20,  pp.  564-567.  London,  1868,  etc. 
Bookbinding. 

ALMANACKS  AND  LISTS — 

Almanac  Dauphin,  ou  Tablettes  Royales  du  vrai  merite  des  Artistes 
celebres  du  Royaume.  Get  Almanach  a  paru  annuellement  de 
1772  a  1777. 

Almanach  du  Commerce  de  Paris  pour  1'an  VII.  de  la  Republique 
Fran$aise,  pp.  693.  Paris,  de  rimprimerie  de  Valade.  8vo. 
Tableau  di vise  en  trois  classes  dela  Communaute  des  Maitresde 
Marchands  Papetiers-Colleurs  et  en  Meubles,  Cartiers,  Relieurs- 
Doreurs  de  Livres  de  la  Ville,  Faubourgs  et  Banlieue  de  Paris. 
Chez  laVve.  Valade,  1789.  Pp.  46.  I2mo.  Get  Annuaire  a 
etc  dresse  conformement  a  1'Edit  de  1776.  Tres  precieux 
Recueil  pour  1'Histoire  de  la  Reliure,  d'une  grande  rarete. 

Alt-Mutter  (G.).  Ueber  die  Beschaffenheit,  den  Gebrauch  u.  die 
Verfertigung  der  beweglichen  Bucher  Einbande  des  Herrn 
Decourdemanche  in  Paris.  Mit  Abbildungen.  Wien,  1832. 
8vo.  [Enthalten  in  Band  13  der  Jahrbiicher  des  kaiserlich 
kb'niglich  polytechnischen  Instituts  in  Wien.] 

American  Bookbinder.     Monthly.     Buffalo,  N.Y.,  1890,  &c. 

American  Bookmaker.  An  illustrated  Trade  Journal.  New  York, 
1881,  &c. 

Andrews  (William  Loring).  Roger  Payne  and  his  Art.  Pp.  35. 
II  Plates.  1 20  copies  printed  on  Holland  paper  and  10  on 
Japan.  New  York.  1892.  8vo. 

Andrews  (William  Loring).  Jean  Grolier  de  Sender,  Viscount 
d' Aguisy.  Some  account  of  his  Life  and  of  his  famous  Library. 
Pp.  68.  6  Plates  of  Bindings.  140  copies  and  10  on  Japan. 
New  York,  1892.  8vo. 

Annuaire  du  Bibliophile.  Annee  4  contains  La  reliure  a  1'exposition 
de  Londres  en  1862.  Pp.  15-24.  Paris,  1860-63.  8vo. 

Antiquarian  Magazine,  &c.  Vol.  8,  pp.  172-179.  London,  1881, 
&c.  Bookbinding,  by  B.  Quaritch. 

Antiquary.  London.  4to.  Du  Seuil.  S.  T.  Prideaux.  May, 
1892. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  255 

Anweisung  zur  Buchbinderkunst,  darinnen  alle  Handarbeiten  mit 
gehbrigen  Kupfern.  Leipzig,  1762.  8vo.  2  Theile. 

Archseologia.  Vol.  I.,  Parts  I  and  2.  An  account  of  the  Har- 
monies contrived  by  Nicholas  Ferrar  at  Little  Gidding. 
Captain  J.  E.  Acland-Troyte,  M.  A.  London,  1 888.  Pp.  16. 
4to. 

Further  note  on  the  Harmonies  contrived  by  Nicholas  Ferrar  at 
Little  Gidding,  in  a  letter  from  Captain  J.  E.  Acland-Troyte 
to  Henry  Salusbury  Milman,  Esq.,  M.A.,  Director.  Pp.  4. 

Archaeological  Journal.  Vol.  18,  1861,  pp.  277-286.  London, 
1845,  &c-  Special  Exhibition  and  notices  of  the  Art  of  Book- 
binding. 

Arnett  (John  Andrews).  An  inquiry  into  the  nature  and  form  of 
the  Books  of  the  Ancients.  Pp.  212.  London,  1837.  I2mo. 

Arnett  (John  Andrews).  Bibliopegia,  or  the  Art  of  Bookbinding 
in  all  its  branches.  Pp.  212.  10  Plates  and  Addenda,  pp.  10. 
London,  1835.  I2mo.  For  later  English  editions  see  Hannett 
(John),  J.  A.  Arnett  being  a  pseudonym. 

Arnett  (John  Andrews).  Bibliopegia,  oder  die  Buchbinderkunst  in 
alien  ihren  Zweigen.  2  Auflage.  Mit  IO  Steintafeln  u. 
Holzschnitten.  Aus  dem  Englischen.  Pp.  232.  Stuttgart, 
1837.  i6mo. 

Arnett  (John  Andrews).  The  Bookbinders'  School  of  Design  as 
applied  to  the  Combination  of  Tools  in  the  Art  of  Finishing. 
Pp.  14.  8  Plates  engraved  by  Joseph  Morris.  London,  1837. 
4to. 

Arrest  du  Conseil  d'Etat  prive  du  Roy  du  18  Septembre,  1730. 
Opuscule  de  12  pages  qui  se  trouve  generalement  dansle  Regle- 
me^t  pour  la  Libraire  et  Imprimerie  de  Paris,  arrete  en  Conseil 
d'Etat  le  28  Fevrier,  1723,  et  public  en  1731.  Paris,  P.  A.  Le 
Mercier,  pere.  I2mo. 

Art  of  Bookbinding,  The.     Pp.92.     London,  1818.     8vo. 

Art  and  Letters.  London,  1881,  &c.,  1883.  August  and  Septem- 
ber. Bookbinding  Illustrated. 


256  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Art  Journal,  The.  London,  1849,  &c.  Years  1850,  1854,  1859, 
1861,  1876,  1878,  1880,  1881.  Articles  relating  to  Binding. 

L'Art  et  1'Idee.  Revue  contemporaine  du  Dilettantisme  litteraire  et 
de  la  curiosite.  A  monthlyjournal.  Paris,  1892.  8vo.  No. 
2  contains  Saint  Heraye  (G.  de)  La  decoration  exterieure  des 
livres  with  the  Illustrations  contained  in  an  article  on  the  same 
subject  in  CasselFs  Magazine  of  Art,  1891,  by  S.  T.  Prideaux. 

L'Art  Pratique  (Georges  Huth).  Leipsic  and  Paris,  1879-85.  4to. 
Recueil  de  documents  choisis  dans  les  ouvrages  des  grands 
maitres,  Fran$ais,  Italiens,  Allemands,  Neerlandais,  &c.  Two 
or  three  designs  for  bindings. 

Arte  Italiana  decorativa  e  industriale.  Roma- Venezia,  1890.  Folio. 
Monthly  periodical.  Anno  I.,  No.  9,  contains  Legaturidi  libri 
dei  secoli  xv.  and  xvi.  Illustrated.  See  Portafoglio  ddle 
Arti  decorative. 

Auber  (Ed.).  Reliure  d'un  MS.  dit  Evangeliaire  de  Charlemagne, 
Paris,  1874.  8vo.  Extract  from  Vol.  35  of  the  Mhnoires  de 
la  Socie'te  Nationale  des  Antiqtiaires  de  France. 

Balinger  (E.  F.).  Deutliche  u.  volkommen  bewahrte  Anweisung 
aus  Biichern,  etc.  Flecken  aller  Art  .  .  .  zu  vertilgen. 
Pp.  15.  Stuttgart  [1867].  8vo. 

Bapst  (Germain)  Les  Arts  du  Bois,  des  tissus  et  du  papier.  Paris, 
1883.  8vo.  Chapter  on  "  L'Imprimerie  et  la  Reliure,"  with 
18  Plates  of  Bindings.  This  work  reproduced  the  principal 
exhibits  of  the  Exhibition  in  1882  of  the  Union  centrale  des 
Arts  decoratifs. 

Bauchart  (E.  Q.).  Les  Femmes  Bibliophiles  de  France.  2  vols. 
With  43  Plates  of  arms  and  25  reproductions  of  bindings. 
Paris,  1886.  Large  8vo. 

Bauer  (C.).  Handbuch  der  Buchbinderei.  7.  Auflage  v.  C.  F.  G. 
Thou's  Die  Kunst  Biicher  zu  binden.  Mit  36  Holzschnitten  im 
Text  u.  einem  Atlas  v.  1 1  Foliotafeln,  enthaltend  Abbildungen 
alterer  u.  neuerer  Buchverzierungen.  Weimar,  1881.  8vo. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  257 

Beauchamps  (J.  de)  et  Rouveyre  (Edouard).  Guide  du  Libraire- 
Antiquaire  et  du  Bibliophile.  Preface  par  Jules  Richard.  Pp. 
xv.,  176.  46  Plates  and  Frontispiece.  Paris,  1884-5.  8vo. 
Vol.  i  issued  in  12  parts.  Only  4  parts  issued  of  Vol.  2. 

Behrend  (L.).  Das  Ganze  des  Vergoldens  fiir  Buchbinder.  Duis- 
burg,  1841.  8vo. 

Bender  (E.).  Alt-deutsche  Lederarbeiten.  Leipzig,  1889-90. 
Folio. 

Beraldi  (Henri).  Estampes  a  livres  1872-1892.  Pp.  207.  40 
Plates  of  Bindings.  390  copies.  Paris,  1892.  Large  8vo. 

Berard  (Andre).  Dictionnaire  biographique  des  artistes  fran9ais  du 
xve  au  xvne  siecle,  suivi  d'une  table  chronologique  et  alpha- 
betique  comprenant  en  20  classes  les  arts  mentionnes  dans 
1'ouvrage.  Paris,  1872.  Svo.  Class  18  is  of  binders,and  gives 
a  brief  notice  of  34  French  binders. 

Bergmeister  (T.).    Unterweisung  in  der  Buchbinderkunst.    Leipzig. 

Berjeau  (Jean  Philibert).  Le  Bibliomane.  Londres,  1867.  Small 
Svo.  Two  numbers  continued  as  Le  Bibliophile  illustre. 
Londres  et  Paris,  1867.  Large  Svo.  These  together  form 
Vol.  I.,  Nos.  1-12.  Continued  as  Le  Bibliophile,  Vol.  II., 
Nos.  13-25.  Londres,  1867.  Svo.  Le  Bibliophile  illustre 
contains  Les  Reliures  de  Grolier.  Pp.  2.  i  Plate. 

Berliner  Buchbinderzeitung.     Berlin,   1883.     Folio. 

Bernard  (Auguste).  Geoffrey  Tory,  Peintre  et  Graveur,  premier 
Imprimeur  Royal.  Paris,  1857.  Svo.  Deuxieme  edition. 
Paris,  1865.  Svo. 

Bibliophile  Fran^aise.  Gazette  illustree  des  Amateurs  de  Livres, 
d'Estampes,  et  de  haute  curiosite.  Paris,  1867-73.  7  vols. 
Svo.  113  Plates  of  bindings,  armorials,  &c.,  with  text  by 
Brunei,  Julien,  Fournier,  &c.  101  of  these  Plates  appeared 
later  in  the  Album  de  rcliures,  by  Julien. 

Bibliotheque  Nationale.     Notice  des  Objets  exposes.     Paris,  1881. 

Bickell  (L.).  Bucheinbande  des  XV.  bis  xvin.  Jahrhunderts  aus 
Hessischen  Bibliotheken.  42  Plates.  Leipzig,  1892.  Folio. 

Bickley  (A.  C.).  On  Embroidered  and  Embroidering  Books. 
Woman's  World,  1889.  pp.  41-45.  5  Illustrations. 


258  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Bigmore  (Edward  C. ).  The  Printed  Book.  London,  1887.  8vo. 
Illustrated,  pp.  viii.  312.  A  translation  of  Le  Livre  by 
Henry  Bouchot. 

Bigmore  (Edward  C. ).  [Another  edition.]  The  Book:  its  Printers, 
Illustration,  and  Binders.  Edited  by  H.  Grevel.  Pp.  383. 
London,  1890.  8vo.  Chapter  viii.  treats  of  Bookbinding. 

Blades  (William).  The  Enemies  of  Books.  Pp.  xiii.,  no.  Illus- 
trated. London,  1880.  Post  8vo.  Second  Edition.  Pp.  xiii., 
114.  1880.  3rd  edition. 

Blades  (William).  [Another  edition.]  Revised  and  enlarged. 
Pp.  xiii.,  165.  London,  1888.  8vo.  This  volume  forms  part 
of  the  Book  Lover's  Library,  edited  by  H.  B.  Wheatley. 

Blades  (William).  Les  Livres  et  leurs  Ennemis.  Traduit  de 
1' Anglais.  Pp.  128.  Paris,  Londres  (printed),  1883.  8vo. 

Blades  (William).  Books  in  Chains.  London,  1890.  8vo.  2nd 
edition.  1892. 

Blades  (William).     The  Chained  Library.     London,  1890.     8vo. 

Blades  (William).  Bibliographical  Miscellanies.  1890.  8vo.  For 
additional  notes  to  the  above  by  W.  Salt-Brassington,  see  The 
Library,  July,  1891,  &c. 

Blades  (William).  Pentateuch  of  Printing.  Pp.  xxvi.,  118.  Illus- 
trated. London,  1891.  4to. 

Blanc  (Charles).  Gazette  des  Beaux-Arts.  Vol.  22.  Oct.  and 
Nov.  1880.  12  Plates.  Some  portion  of  these  two  articles 
was  incorporated  in  the  chapter  on  Binding  in  the  Author's 
Grammaire  des  Arts  decoratifs. 

Blanc  (Charles).  Grammaire  des  Arts  decoratifs.  Pp.  417-456. 
6  Plates.  Paris,  1882.  8vo. 

Boeck  (T.).  Die  Marmorirkunst.  Mit  30  Marmorpapiermustern. 
Wien,  1880.  8vo. 

Bonnardot  (A.).  Essai^sur  1'art  de  restaurer  les  Estampes  et  les 
Livres.  Seconde  Edition.  Pp.  349.  Paris,  1858.  8vo. 

Bonnardot  (A.).  De  la  reparation  des  vieilles  Reliures,  complement 
de  1'essai  sur  1'art  de  restaurer  les  Estampes  et  les  Livres. 
Pp.  72.  Paris,  1858.  8vo. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  259 

Book  of  English  Trades.  Pp.  442.  70  Engravings.  The  Book- 
binder. Pp.  29-35.  I  Engraving.  London,  1818.  I2mo. 

Bookbinder,  The.  London,  1887,  &c.  A  Trade  Journal,  con- 
tinued as  the  British  Bookmaker. 

Bookbinders'  Price  Book,  calculated  for  the  different  Modes  of 
Binding,  as  agreed  upon  at  a  General  Meeting  of  the  Trade, 
December,  1812.  Pp.  48.  London,  1813.  8vo. 

Bookbinders'  Complete  Instructor  in  all  Branches  of  Bookbinding, 
&c.  Peterhead,  1823.  I2mo. 

Bookbinders'  Trade  Circular,  The.     London,  1850-77.      I2mo. 

Bookbinding  Trade,  The.  Proceedings  at  a  Meeting  of  the  Book- 
sellers and  Publishers  of  London  and  Westminster.  Pp.  15. 
1839.  8vo. 

Book-finishers'  Friendly  Circular,  The.  Conducted  by  a  Com- 
mittee of  the  Finishers'  Friendly  Association.  London. 
Printed  for  the  Association,  1845-51.  I2mo.  Contains  Illus- 
trations of  styles  of  finishing. 

Bookmart,  The.  Pittsburg,  U.S.  Vol.  V.  April,  1888.  The 
Art  of  Bookbinding.  This  article,  by  Theodore  Child,  origin- 
ally appeared  in  the  New  York  Sun. 

Bookseller,  The.  London,  1858,  &c.  Numerous  Trade  Notices, 
also  an  Account  of  the  Bookbindings  exhibited  at  the  Exhibition 
of  1862,  May  3  ist,  1862. 

Bordeaux  (Raymond).  Quelques  mots  sur  1'Histoire  de  la  reliure 
de  Livres.  Pp.  8.  2  Plates.  Paris,  1858.  8vo. 

Bosquet  (Emile).  Traite  theorique  et  pratique  de  1'art  du  relieur. 
Pp.  viii.,  323.  16  Plates  and  71  Illustrations  in  Text.  Paris, 
1890.  8vo. 

Bosquet  (Emile).  Baremes  ou  devis  de  Travaux  de  Reliure.  Paris, 
1892.  410. 

Bouchot  (Henri).  De  la  Reliure,  exemples  a  imiter  ou  a  rejeter. 
Pp.  92.  15  Plates.  Paris,  1891.  8vo. 

Bouchot  (Henri).  Le  Livre,  1'Illustration,  la  Reliure.  Etude 
historique  sommaire.  Paris,  1886.  Post  8vo.  Illustrated. 
Chapter  viii.  treats  of  Bookbinding. 

S  2 


260  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Bouchot  (Henri).  Les  Reliures  d'art  a  la  Bibliotheque  Nationale. 
Pp.51.  80  Plates.  Paris,  1888.  8vo.  Pp.  xii.,  Notices  des 
planches. 

Bouvenne  (Aglalis).  Les  monogrammes  historiques.  Paris,  Aca- 
demic des  Bibliophiles,  1870.  I2mo.  Contains  many  mono- 
grams taken  from  bookbindings. 

Box  (Ernest).  Dictionnaire  de  1'Art,  de  la  Curiosite  et  du  Bibelot. 
Pp.  568-73.  410.  Art  de  la  Reliure.  Illustrated.  Paris, 
1883. 

Brade  (Ludwig).  Illustrirtes  Buchbinderbuch.  2  Auflage  besorgt 
v.  Herzog.  Leipzig,  1868.  8vo.  Mit  einem  Atlas  dazu. 
Lief.  I.  Quer  Folio — 3  ganzlich  umgearb.  Auflage  v.  Robt. 
Metz.  Mit  150  Holzschnitten.  1882.  8vo. 

Brade  (Ludwig)  and  Winckler  (Emil).  Das  Illustrirte  Buchbinder- 
buch. Pp.  276.  71  Illustrations  in  Text.  Leipzig,  1860. 
8vo. 

Brade  (Ludwig)  and  Winckler  (Emil).  Het  Geillustreerde  Boek- 
bindersboek,  met  vele  Houtgravuren.  Pp.  326.  Leyden, 
1861.  i6mo. 

Bradshaw  (Henry).  Notice  of  a  fragment  of  the  Fifteen  Oes  and 
other  prayers.  [Memoranda,  No.  5.]  Pp.  12.  London, 
1877.  8vo. 

Brassington  (Wm.  Salt). 

1.  Paper  upon  "Thomas  Hall,  and  the  old  Library  founded  by 
him  at  King's  Norton."      Transactions  of  the  Library  Asso- 
ciation, 1887-88. 

2.  Paper  upon  "An  Old  Birmingham  Lecturer,  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Hall,  B.D.,  1610-65."     Transactions  of  the  Birmingham  and 
Midland  Institution.     Archaeological  Section,  1887-88. 

3.  On  Bookbinding.    A  Paper  read  before  the  Midland  Institute, 
27th  March,  1889.    A  few  copies  printed  off  separately.    Pp.  15. 
1890.    4to. 

4.  Additional  Notes  to  "  Blades'  Bibliographical  Miscellanies," 
The  Library,  July,  1891,  &c. 

Brassington  (W.  Salt).  Historic  Bindings  at  the  Bodleian  Library, 
Oxford,  with  reproductions  and  descriptions  of  24  books. 
London,  1892.  410. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  261 

British  Bookmaker,  The.  Monthly  Trade  Journal.  Illustrated. 
London,  1890,  &c.  Small  4to. 

British  Museum,  i.  A  Guide  to  the  Printed  Books  exhibited  in 
the  King's  Library.  1891.  2.  A  Guide  to  the  Autograph 
Letters,  Manuscripts,  Charters,  Seals,  Illuminations,  and  Bind- 
ings exhibited  in  the  Department  of  Manuscripts  and  in  the 
Grenville  Library.  1890. 

Brockhaus'  Conversations- Lexikon.  Band  3.  Pp.  650-652.  I  Plate 
of  Illustrations  of  Binders'  presses,  &c.  Leipzig,  1882,  &c. 

Brosenius  (Fr.).  54  Anweisungen  in  der  Buchbinderkunst.  Qued- 
linburg,  1842.  i6mo.  2te  vermehrte  Auflage. 

Brosenius  (Fr. ).  70  Anweisungen  in  der  Buchbinderkunst.  Qued- 
linburg,  1847.  I2mo. 

Brunet  (Gustave).  Dictionnaire  de  Bibliologie  Catholique.  Columns 
1263-1282 — Article,  "Reliure."  Paris,  1860.  8vo. 

Brunet  (Gustave).  Dictionnaire  de  Bibliographic  et  de  Bibliologie. 
Supplement.  Columns  588-591 — Article,  "  Reliure. "  Paris, 
1866.  8vo. 

Brunet  (Gustave).  Etudes  sur  la  Reliure  des  livres  et  sur  les  collec- 
tions de  quelques  bibliophiles  celebres.  Pp.  50.  Bordeaux, 
1866.  8vo.  This  pamphlet  has  the  object  of  supplementing 
Fournier's  La  Reliure  aux  derniers  sttcles,  and  contains 
extracts  from  Libri's  Monuments  inedits. 

Brunet  (Gustave).  Another  Edition.  Bordeaux,  1873.  8vo.  115 
copies  only  printed. 

Brunet  (Gustave).  Another  Edition.  Pp.  vi.,  173.  Bordeaux, 
1891.  8vo. 

Brunet  (Gustave).  Bibliomania  in  the  present  day,  from  the  French 
of  Philomneste  Junior.  With  a  notice  and  portrait  of  Trautz- 
Bauzonnet.  Pp.  141.  New  York,  1880.  8vo. 

Brunet  (Gustave).  La  Reliure  ancienne  et  moderne.  Recueil  de 
116  Planches  de  reliures  artistiques  des  xvic,  xvn«,  xvm«  et 
xixe  Siecles.  Introduction  par  G.  Brunet.  Paris,  1884. 
Large  8vo. 

Buecher  (C.).  Frankfurter  Buchbinder-Ordnungen.  Frankfurt, 
1888.  8vo. 


262  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Buecher  (Carl).  Frankfurter  Buchbinder-Ordnungen  vom  xvi. 
bis  zum  xix.  Jahrhundert.  Tubingen,  1888. 

Buecking  (J.  J.  H.).     Die  Kunst  des  Buchbinders.     Stendal,  1785. 

8vo. 
Buecking  (J.  J.  H.).     [Another  edition.]     Neu  verbessert  u.  ver- 

mehrt  herausgegeben,  von  J.  M.  D.  B.   Stadt  am  Hof.  2  Plates. 

1807.     8vo. 
Bulletin  des  Arts.    Paris,  1845-48.    8vo.     Continuation  of  Bulletin 

de  T  alliance  des  Arts  (1842-44),  year  1845,  P-  3I5t  an<l  1846, 

p.  33  and  p.  256. 
Bulletin  du  Bibliophile  public  par  Techener.    Paris,  1834,  &c.    8vo. 

Numerous  Articles  and  Plates. 

Butsch  (A.  F.).  Die  Biicher-Ornament  der  Hoch-u.-Spat  Re- 
naissance. Leipzig,  1878-1880.  410.  2  Bande. 

Cabinet  of  Useful  Arts  and  Manufactures,  designed  for  the  perusal 
of  Young  Persons.  Pp.  125-8.  Dublin,  1821.  The  Art  of 
Binding  Books. 

Caille  (Jean  de  la).  Histoire  de  1'Imprimerie  et  de  la  Librairie,  ou 
1'on  voit  son  origine  et  son  progres  jusqu'en  1689.  Divisee  en 
deux  livres.  Pp.  348.  Paris,  Jean  de  la  Caille,  1689.  4*0. 

Calcar.     Boekbindern.     Met  Houtgravuren.     1881.     8vo. 

Calvert  (F.  Grace).  On  Decay  in  the  Binding  of  Books.  Trans- 
actions of  the  Society  of  Arts.  Pp.  1 20- 22.  Vol.57.  1851. 

Cartier  (Alfred).  De  la  decoration  exterieure  des  livres  et  de  1'his- 
toire  de  la  Reliure  depuis  le  quinzieme  siecle.  Pp.  209.  12 
Plates.  1885.  Extrait  du  Bulletin  de  la  Societe  des  Arts  de 
Geneve.  Reproduced  without  consent  of  the  author  in  the 
Journal  Union  de  la  Papeterie,  Lausanne,  1886,  and  with 
inferior  Plates. 

Case  of  the  Bookbinders  of  Great  Britain,  The.  [Praying  that  the 
House  of  Commons  "will  not  consent  to  prohibit  the  making 
Mill-boards."]  [London,  1711.]  S.  sh.  fol. 

Case  of  the  Bookbinders  of  Great  Britain,  The.  ["  Humbly  offered 
to  the  Consideration  of  the  Hon.  House  of  Commons,  relating 
to  the  excessive  duty  resolved  to  be  laid  on  Mill-boards."] 
[London,  1711.]  S.  sh.  fol. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  263 

Cassell's  Technical  Educator.  Pp.  40-42,  87-90,  296-7,  401. 
Vol.4.  London,  1886.  Art  of  Bookbinding. 

Catalogue  chronologique  des  Libraires  et  des  Libraires-Imprimeurs 
de  Paris,  depuis  1  an  1470,  epoque  de  1'etablissement  de  1'Im- 
primerie  dans  cette  capitale,  jusqu'a  present.  Paris,  chez  Jean- 
Roch  Lottin  de  Saint-German,  1789.  I2mo. 

Catalogue  de  la  Bibliotheque  de  M.  Rivide  Heredie,  Comte  de 
Benahavis.  3  Plates.  Paris,  1891.  8vo. 

Catalogue  69  de  la  Librairie  ancienne  de  Ludwig  Rosenthal. 
6  Plates.  Munich,  1892.  8vo. 

Catalogue  de  Livres  rares  et  precieux  composant  la  Bibliotheque  de 
M.  Hippolyte  Destailleur.  I  Plate.  Paris,  1891.  4to. 

Catalogue  de  Livres  et  Manuscrits,  la  plupart  rares  et  precieux 
provenant  du  Grenier  de  Charles  Cousin.  Pp.  240.  5  Plates. 
Catalogue  de  Faiences  Anciennes.  Pp.  25.  6  Plates.  Paris, 
1891.  Large  4to. 

Catalogue  de  Livres  rares  et  precieux  dont  la  vente  aura  lieu  a 
Munich,  Juillet  21,  1891.  4  Reproductions  of  Bindings. 

Catalog  der  im  Germanischen  Museum  vorhandenen  interessanten 
Bucheinbande  und  Teile  von  solchen.  Mit  Abbildungen. 
Pp.  IO2.  Niirnberg,  1889.  8vo. 

Catalogue  des  livres  composant  la  Bibliotheque  de  S.  E,  Don  Paolo 
Borghese,  Prince  de  Salmona.  Premiere  partie  vente  de  16 
Mai  au  7  Juin,  1892.  Roma.  8vo.  Pp.  714.  36  Repro- 
ductions de  Reliure. 

Catalogue  du  Musee  Fol.  W.  Fol.  Paris  and  Geneva,  1879.  4 
vols.  8vo.  Vol.  4,  chap,  v.,  contains  Reliure.  Pp.  202-267. 
33  Illustrations. 

Catalogue  illustre  de  la  Bibliotheque  du  Marquis  de  Morante. 
PP-  352-  35  Plates  of  Bindings.  Paris,  1872.  8vo. 

Catalogue  of  a  Loan  Collection  of  Ancient  and  Modern  Book- 
bindings exhibited  at  the  Liverpool  Art  Club,  November,  1882. 
Pp.  47.  Pp.  v.  of  Introduction,  by  J.  N.  (John  Newton). 
Liverpool,  published  by  the  Club,  1882.  8vo. 


264  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Catalogue  of  the  valuable  and  very  extensive  Library  of  the  late 
James  T.  Gibson  Craig,  Esq.  In  IO  parts.  32  plates.  100 
copies  printed  on  large  and  fine  paper.  London,  1887. 
Large  4to. 

Catalogue  of  the  very  choice  Collection  of  Books  and  Miniatures 
formed  many  years  since  by  J.  T.  Payne,  Esq.,  sold  by  Sotheby, 
Wilkinson  &  Hodge  on  Wednesday,  the  loth  day  of  April, 
1878.  9  Plates  of  Bindings  facsimilied  in  colours. 

Catalogue  of  an  Exhibition  of  Bookbindings,  1860-90.  Pp.  61. 
New  York,  the  Grolier  Club,  1891.  I2mo. 

Catalogue  of  the  Choicer  Portion  of  the  Library  formed  by  M. 
Guglielmo  Libri.  London,  1859.  The  introduction,  by  G. 
Libri,  contains  information  relative  to  Bookbindings. 

Catalogue  of  the  Exhibition  of  Bookbindings  at  the  Burlington 
Fine  Arts  Club,  London,  1891.  Pp.  Ixi.  of  Introduction ; 
xvi.,  by  E.  Gordon  Duff,  on  early  stamped  bindings,  and  xlv.  by 
S.  T.  Prideaux,  on  gilt  bindings.  4to. 

Catalogue  of  the  Exhibition  of  Modern  Bookbindings  at  the 
Caxton  Head,  High  Holborn,  1891.  4to.  Pp.  15.  2  Plates 
of  Bindings. 

Catalogue  of  the  Exhibition  of  Art  Bindings  at  Nottingham  Castle, 
in  connexion  with  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Library 
Association.  Pp.  ii. ,  52.  8  Illustrations.  1891. 

Catalogues  illustres  de  la  Bibliotheque  de  Amb.  Firmin  Didot. 
5  torn.  Paris,  1878-84.  4to.  Numerous  Plates  of  Bindings. 

Century  Magazine.     Vol.  39.      The  Grolier  Club  of  New  York. 

Pp.  86-97.     5  Reproductions  of  Bindings. 
Chambers  (Robert).     Book  of  Days.    Vol.  II.,  pp.  338-40.    2vols. 

London,   1886.     Imp.  8vo.     Ancient  Books.      Vol.  II.,  pp. 

596-97.     Illustrated.     Roger  Payne.     Illustrated. 

Chambers'  Journal.     Edinburgh,    1844,   &c.     Years,    1856,    1857, 

1869,  1885.     Articles  on  Bookbinding. 
Champollion-Figeac  (Aime).    Documents  Paleographiques  relatifs 

a  1'Histoire  des  Beaux  Arts.     Paris,  1868.     8vo. 
Chevillier  (Andre).    Dissertation  Historique  et  Critique  sur  1'Origine 

de  1'Imprimerie  de  Paris.     Pp.  448.     Paris,  1694. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  265 

Chretien-Lalanne  (Marie  Ludovic).  Curiosites  bibliographiques. 
Reliures  pp.  300-309.  Paris,  1845.  I2mo.  One  of  the  vols. 
of  the  BibliothZque  ae  Poche. 

Clarke  (William).     Repertorium  Bibliographicum.     1819. 
Clemence  (Adolphe).     Revue  de  la  Reliure  et  de  la  Bibliophilie. 
3  Plates.     Paris,  1869.     8vo.     Three  numbers  only  appeared. 

Clerget  (Charles  Ernest).  Motifs  d'Ornaments  du  xvie  siecle 
(Liv.  1-3  only  published).  3  Plates  of  Bindings.  Paris, 
1840.  4to. 

Cobden-Sanderson  (T.  J.).  Article  on  Bookbinding  in  English 
Illustrated  Magazine.  Pp.  323-332.  Illustrated.  Jan.,  1891. 

Cobden-Sanderson  (T.  J. ).  Article  in  the  Arts'  and  Crafts' 
Exhibition  Society  Catalogue.  Pp.  n.  First  Exhibition,  1888. 

Cobden-Sanderson  (T.  J.).  Craft  Ideals.  Transactions  of  the 
National  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Art  and  its 
Application  to  Industry.  Pp.  256-266.  Liverpool  Meeting, 
1888. 

Code  de  la  Librairie  et  Imprimerie  de  Paris.  Pp.  500.  Paris, 
1744.  I2mo. 

Collections  de  Charles  Cousin.  Sale  Catalogue  on  Japanese 
Paper.  5  Plates  of  Bindings.  1891.  Large  4to. 

Collet  (S.).     Relics  of  Literature.     Pp.  400.     Contains  Bills  of 

Roger  Payne.     London,  1823.     8vo. 
Collinot  (E.)  et  Beaumont  (A.  de).     Ornements  de  la  Perse,  &c. 

Paris,  1880.     Imp.  folio.     Several  Plates  of  Bindings. 
Collinot  (E.)  et  Beaumont  (A.  de).    Recueil  de  Dessins  pour  1'Art 

et  1'Industrie.     Paris,    1859.     Folio.     217  Etchings — a  few  of 

Bindings. 
Commission  d'enquete  sur  la  situation  des  ouvriers  et  des  industries 

d'art   instituted  par  decret,  en  date  du  24  Decembre,   1881. 

Paris,  1884.     4to.     Dans  ce  recueil  se  trouve  la  deposition  de 

M.  Lortic  pour  la  Reliure. 

Constantin  (Leopold  Auguste)  pseud.  Bibliotheconomie.  In- 
structions sur  1'arrangement,  la  conservation  et  1'administration 

des  Bibliotheques.      Pp.  56-61.     Paris,   1839.     Svo.     De   la 

Reliure. 


266  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Constantin  (Leopold  Augusts)  flseud.  Nouvelle  edition  .  .  .  aug- 
mentee.  1841.  [One  of  the  Manuels  RoretJ\ 

Constantin  (Leopold  Auguste)  pseud.  Biblioteconomia,  6  nuevo 
manuel  completo  para  el  arreglo,  la  conservacion  y  la  ad- 
ministracion  de  las  bibliotecas.  .  traducido  del  frances  al 
castellano  y  adicionado  por  D.  Hidalgo.  Madrid,  1865.  8vo. 

Cousin  (Charles).  Racontars  illustres  d'un  vieux  Collectionneur. 
Pp-  335-  8  Plates  of  Bindings.  Paris,  1887.  Large  4to. 

Cousin  (Jules).  De  1'organisation  et  de  1'administration  des  biblio- 
theques  publiques  et  privees.  Manuel  theorique  et  pratique  du 
bibliothecaire.  Pp.  151-169.  Paris,  1882.  8vo. 

Cowie.  Bookbinders'  Manual.  William  Strange,  Junior,  8,  Amen 
Corner,  Paternoster  Row.  7th  Edition.  London. 

Craig  (James  Gibson).  Facsimiles  of  Old  Bookbinding  in  the 
Collection  of  J.  G.  Craig.  Privately  printed.  25  copies  only. 
No  letterpress.  27  Plates.  Edinburgh,  1882.  4to. 

Crane  (W.  J.  E. ).  Bookbinding  for  Amateurs.  Pp.  vi.,  184. 
Illustrated  with  156  Engravings.  London,  1885.  8vo. 

Crusius  (F.  G.).  Beitrage  zur  Geschichte  der  Buchbinderkunst.  In 
illustrirte  Zeitung  fur  Buchbinderei,  &c.  No.  3-9.  1869. 
Leipzig.  4to. 

Crusius  (F.  G. ).  Ueber  die  Entwickelung  des  gegenwartigen 
Verhaltnisse  im  deutschen  Zunft-  u.  Handwerksleben,  seit  dem 
Anfange  dieses  Jahrhunderts.  Diisseldorf.  1858.  8vo.  Aus 
der  Deutsche  Gewerbezeitungv.  1853. 

Cundall   (Joseph).      Chambers'  Encyclopaedia — Article  on   Book- 

binding. 
Cundall    (Joseph).       On     Bookbindings,    Ancient    and    Modern. 

Pp.  xi.,  132.     28  Plates.     London,  1881.     Cr.  410. 

Cundall  (Joseph).  On  Ornamental  Art,  applied  to  Ancient  and 
Modern  Bookbinding.  London,  1848.  4to.  Read  before  the 
Society  of  Arts,  1847.  Some  copies  have  21  Plates  by 
Tuckett,  selected  chiefly  from  the  Library  of  the  British 
Museum.  See  also  Transactions  of  the  Society  of  Arts. 
Pp.  213-225.  Supp.  vol.  [vol.  56].  6  Plates  and  Facsimile 
of  a  Bill  for  Binding  by  Roger  Payne. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  267 

Cyprianus  (Ernst  Salomo).    Selecta  Programmata.    Pp.  40-46.  Co- 
burgi,  1708.     8vo.     De  Ornatu  Librorum. 


Danel  (L. ).  17  Planches  de  Reliure  executees  en  chromotypo- 
graphie  tirees  sur  papier  du  Japon  et  publiees  dans  le  Bulletin 
Morgand  et  Fatout.  Paris.  4to. 

Davenport  (Cyril  James). 

1.  Note  on  an  Old  Binding.      The  Bookbinder,  Vol.  2,  p.  44, 
Sept.,  1888.    Illustrated. 

2.  Early  English  Embroidered  Books,  &c.     The  Queen,  Jan.  26, 
1889.     Illustrated. 

3.  Embroidered  Books.      The  Bookmaker,  New  York,  No.  6, 
Vol.  XI,  Dec.,  1890.     Illustrated. 

4.  Early  London  Bookbindings,  &c.     The  Queen,  June  20,  1891. 
Illustrated. 

5.  Embroidered  Books  at  the  Burlington  Fine  Arts  Club.      The 
Queen,  Aug.  15,  1891,  and  Aug.  29,  1891.     Illustrated. 

De  Chanteau  (Maurice).  De  la  Corporation  des  Imprimeurs, 
Libraireset  Relieurs  de  la  Ville  de  Metz.  Pp.  40.  Metz,  1867. 
8vo.  (Reproduction  des  Actes  dela  Communaute  depuis  1656 
jusq'en  1781.) 

Defremery  (C.).  Journals  des  Savants.  Paris,  1816,  &c.  4to. 
August  and  September,  1876. 

Derome  (Leopold).  La  Reliure  de  Luxe.  Le  livre  et  I'amateur. 
Pp.  246.  63  Coloured  Plates  from  original  designs.  Paris, 
1888. 

Derome  (Leopold).  Le  Luxe  des  Livres.  Pp.  xii.,  140.  Paris, 
1879.  I2mo. 

Designs  and  Ornaments  for  Bookbinding.     London,  1840.     4to. 

Deutsche  Buchbinderzeitung.  36Nos.  Leipzig,  1 880-81.  Fol.  A 
Trade  Journal. 

Deutsche  Bucheinbande  der  Neuzeit,  eine  Sammlung  ausgefuhrter 
Arbeiten  aus  Deutschen  Werkstatten  mit  erlauterndem  Text. 
Herausgegeben  v.  Johannes  Mant.  Leipzig,  1889. 


268  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Dibdin  (Thos.  Frognall).  A  Bibliographical,  Antiquarian,  and 
Picturesque  Tour  in  France  and  Germany.  3  Vols.  London, 
1821.  8vo.  Vol.  2,  pp.  411-421,  contains  the  account  of 
French  binding  and  binders  answered  by  Lesne  in  his  "  Lettre 
d'un  relieur  frangais  a  un  bibliophile  anglais." — Second  edition. 
3  vols.  London,  1829.  8vo. 

Dibdin  (Thos.  Frognall).  The  Bibliographical  Decameron. 
London,  1817.  3  vols.  8vo.  Vol.  2.  Dialogue  8.  Pp. 
425"533  contains  an  account  of  Bookbinding  ancient  and 
modern,  specimens  of  bindings,  and  notices  of  binders. 

Dibdin  (Thos.  Frognall).  Bibliomania.  Pp.  87.  London,  1809. 
8vo.  Another  edition,  much  enlarged.  London,  181 1.  8vo. 
New  and  improved  edition.  London,  1876. 

Dictionnaire  de  1'Industrie,  &c.  Tom.  9.  Pp.  520-529.  Paris,  1840. 
8vo.  Reliure. 

Die  englische  Buchbinderkunst ;  enthaltend  eine  Beschreibung  von 
dem  Werkzeuge,  Vorrichten,  Vergolden,  u.  Ausarbeiten 
Schreibbiicherbinden,  Schnittfarben,  Marmoriren,  Sprengen, 
&c.,  &c.  Leipzig,  1819.  8vo.  I  Holzschnitt. 

Double  (Lucien).  A  travers  deux  Siecles  et  quatorze  Salons. 
Pp.  53.  Illustrated.  Paris,  1878.  8vo. 

Du  Bois  (Henri  Pene).  Historical  Essay  on  the  Art  of  Bookbind- 
ing. Pp.42.  New  York,  1883.  8vo. 

Du  Bois  (Henri  Pene).  Four  Private  Libraries  of  New  York. 
Pp.  119.  8  Plates  of  Bindings.  Edition  limited  to  100  num- 
bered copies.  New  York,  1892.  8vo. 

Dudin.  L'Art  de  Relieur-doreur  de  Livres.  ist  Edition.  Pp. 
112.  1 6  Plates.  Paris,  1772.  Small  folio.  Written  by 
command  of  the  Academic  Royale  des  Sciences,  to  be  included 
in  the  Description  gtnerale  des  Arts  et  Metiers. 

Dudin.  L'Art  du  Relieur.  Nouvelle  edition,  augmentee  de  tout 
ce  qui  a  etc  ecrit  de  mieux  sur  ces  matieres  en  Allemagne,  en 
Angleterre,  en  Suisse,  en  Italie,  &c.  Par  J.  E.  Bertrand. 
Pp.  no,  and  2  Explanatory  Plates.  Paris,  1820.  4to. 
Extract  from  the  Description  generale  des  Arts  el  Metiers. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  269 

Dulac  (L* Abbe  J.).  Reliure  d'un  Montaigne  a  1'S  barre  et  a  mono- 
grammes.  Reponse  a  une  question  de  1'Abbe  L.  Couture. 
Pp.  22.  i  Plate.  Paris,  1880.  8vo. 

Dunning  (T.  J.).  Trades  Societies  and  Strikes.  Some  account  of 
the  London  Consolidated  Society  of  Bookbinders.  Pp.  93-104. 
London,  1860.  8vo. 

Duranville  (Leon  de).  De  la  Bibliophile.  Rouen,  1873.  8vo. 
Extrait  du  Precis  des  Travaux  de  1'Academie  des  Sciences, 
Belles-Lettres  et  Arts  de  Rouen,  &c.  Only  60  copies  printed. 

Du  Sommerard  (Alexandre).  Les  Arts  au  Moyen-Age.  Paris, 
1838-46,  Album  Serie  I.-X.  and  Atlas  contain  several  very 
fine  Plates  of  Bindings. 

Dutuit.  Souvenir  de  1'Exposition  de  M.  Dutuit.  Pp.  107.  34 
Plates.  Paris,  1869.  410. 

Edit  du  Roy  du  21  Aout  1686,  pour  le  reglement  des  Tmprimeurs  et 
Libraires  de  Paris. — fidit  du  Roy  du  7  Septembre  1686,  pour 
le  reglement  des  relieurs  et  doreurs  de  livres.  Paris,  D.  Thierry, 
1687.  410. 

Edit  du  Roy,  portant  nouvelle  Creation  de  six  Corps  de  Marchands  et 
de  quarante-quatre  Communautes  d'Arts  et  Metiers,  donne  au 
mois  d'Aout,  1776.  Une  plaquette  in-4to.  de  30  pages  dans 
laquelle  se  trouve  le  Nouveau  Reglement  qui  erige  la  Reliure 
en  Communaute  nouvelle  avec  les  Papetiers-Colleurs  et  en 
Meubles,  et  les  Cartiers. 

Edmunds  (W.  H.).  Bookbinding.  See  Exhibitions.  Reports  of 
Artizans,  &c. 

Edwards  (Edward).  Memoirs  of  Libraries.  2  vols.  London  and 
Leipzig,  1859.  Svo.  Vol.  2  (pp.  959-987)  contains  an  his- 
torical account  of  Bookbinding,  with  6  Plates. 

Elton  (Charles  Isaac).  A  Catalogue  of  a  portion  of  the  Library 
of  Charles  Isaac  Elton  and  Mary  Augusta  Elton.  Pp.  222. 
28  Plates.  London,  1891.  Svo. 

Encyclopaedias,  &c.  For  Articles  on  Bookbinding,  see  American 
Cyclopaedia — Blackie's  Modern  Cyclopaedia — Bouillet  (N.). 
Dictionnaire  Universel  des  Sciences  .  .  .  et  des  Arts — Ency- 


270  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

clopsedia  Metropolitana — Globe  Encyclopaedia — Johnson. 
Universal  Cyclopaedia — National  Encyclopaedia — Popular 
Encyclopaedia  — Rees- Encyclopaedia  or  Universal  Dictionary. 

Eschebach  (August).  Aus  der  Buchbinderwerkstatt.  Gedichte. 
Pp.  102.  Berlin,  1861.  i6mo. 

Eschebach  (August).  Gebrauchs-Anweisung  zur  einer  neuen  prakti- 
schen  Blattvergoldekunst.  II  Auflage.  Berlin,  1861.  i6mo. 

Etablissement  d'une  Bibliotheque.     Paris,  1877.     I2mo. 

REPORTS  OF  EXHIBITIONS  ARRANGED  CHRONOLOGICALLY. 

Rapport  du  jury  central  sur  les  produits  de  1'industrie  franchise  a 
1'exposition  de  1834,  par  le  Baron  Ch.  Dupin.  3  vols.  in  8vo. 
Paris,  Imprimerie  Royale,  1836. 

Rapport  du  jury  central.  Exposition  des  produits  de  1'industrie  fran- 
caise,  1839.  3  vols.  in  8vo.  Paris,  1839. 

Rapport  du  jury  central.  Exposition  des  produits  de  1'industrie  fran- 
9aise,  1844.  3  vols.  8vo. 

Rapport  du  jury  central  sur  les  produits  de  1'agriculture  et  de  1'indus- 
trie exposes  en  1849.  3  vols.  Paris,  1850.  8vo. 

Exhibition  of  the  Works  of  Industry  of  all  Nations.  Official  De- 
scriptive Catalogue.  Vol.  2.  Pp.  536-552.  London,  1851. 

Exhibition  of  the  Works  of  Industry  of  all  Nations,  1851.  Reports 
of  the  Juries.  Vol.  2.  Pp.  928-936.  London,  1852.  Book- 
binding. 

Exposition  universelle  de  1855.  Rapports  du  jury  mixte 
international.  2 torn.  Pp.  1290-1303.  Paris,  1856.  Reliure, 
p.  341.  Machines  pour  la  reliure. 

International  Exhibition,  1862.  Reports  of  the  Juries.  London, 
1863.  Class  38.  Section  D.  Bookbinding. 

Rapports  du  jury  international  sur  1'exposition  de  Londres,  1862, 
publics  par  Michel  Chevalier.  6  vols.  Paris,  1862.  8vo. 

Rapport  des  ouvriers  relieurs  delegues  a  1'exposition  universelle  de 
Londres  en  1862.  Pp.  36.  Paris,  1863.  8vo. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  271 

Exposition  de  1867.     Delegation  des  ouvriers  relieurs. 

Premiere  partie.     La  reliure  aux  expositions  de  1'indus- 

trie  (1798-1862).     Pp.  278.     Paris,  1868.     8vo. 

Deuxtime  Partie.     La  reliure    a    1'exposition  de  1867. 


Etudes  comparatives  de  la  reliure  ancienne  et  moderne.  Pp.  223. 
9  Plates.     Photogravure.     Paris,  1869-75.     8vo. 

Rapport  de  la  commission  superieure  a  1'exposition  universelle  de 
Vienne,  1873  (section  fran£aise).  5  torn.  Paris,  1875.  8vo. 

Rapport  de  la  delegation  ouvriere  fran9aise  a  1'exposition  universelle 
de  Vienne,  1873.  Relieurs.  Paris,  1874.  8vo. 

Rapport  sur  l'imprimerie  et  la  librairie  (et  la  reliure)  a  1'exposition 
Internationale  de  Philadelphie,  1876,  par  Rene  Fouret.  Paris, 
1877.  4to. 

Exposition  Universelle  de  Philadelphie,  1876.  Delegation 
Ouvriere  libre  Relieurs.  Pp.  247.  2  Plates.  Paris,  1879. 
I2mo. 

Union  Centrale  des  Arts  decoratifs  (me  Groupe  de  1'Exposition 
technologique  de  1882).  Librairie,  Photographic,  Gravure, 
Reliure,  Papier  peint.  Rapport  du  Jury  des  Industries  du 
Papier,  par  M.  Alfred  Firmin  Didot.  Paris,  1883.  8vo. 

Union  Centrale  des  Arts  decoratifs  (7e  Exposition,  1882).  Deuxieme 
Exposition  technologique  des  Industries  d'Art.  Le  Bois,  les 
Tissus,  le  Papier.  Documents  Officiels  de  1'Exposition.  Un 
volume  in  4to,  dans  lequel  se  trouve  le  Rapport  de  M.  Alfred 
Firmin-Didot,  sur  la  Reliure.  Paris,  1883. 

Reports  of  Artizans  selected  by  the  Mansion  House  Committee  to 
visit  the  Paris  Universal  Exhibition,  1889.  Pp.  14-45. 
London,  1889.  8vo.  Bookbinding  by  W.  H.  Edmunds. 

Falckenberg  (Albert)  &  Co.  Ideen-Magazin  fur  Buchbinder. 
Zusammenstellung  von  Stempeler,  Linien,  &c.,  aus  der 
Graviranstalt  von  Falckenberg  &  Co.,  in  Magdeburg,  1843-56. 
Imp.  410.  Heft  1-4. 

Falckenberg  (Albert)  &  Co.  Musterblatter  der  Stempel  u.  Fileton 
fur  Buchbinder  und  Vergolder  aus  der  Graviranstalt  von 
Falckenberg  &  Co.,  in  Magdeburg.  Magdeburg.  1844.  4to. 
6  Hefte. 


273  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Falke  (Jacob).  Die  byzantinischen  Buchdeckel  der  St.  Marcus 
Bibliothek  in  Venedig.  Text  and  10  Plates.  Wien,  1867. 
Large  folio. 

Fine  Arts  Quarterly  Review.  London,  1863.  Year  1863.  Ancient 
Ornamental  Bindings. 

Firmin-Didot.  Catalogue  illustre  de  la  bibliotheque  de  Ambroise 
Firmin-Didot.  Paris.  1878-84.  4to.  5  vols.  Numerous 
Plates  of  Bindings. 

Fitzgerald  (Percy).  The  Book  Fancier  ;  or,  the  Romance  of  Book 
Collecting.  Pp.  99-136.  London,  1886.  I2mo. 

Fizeliere  (Albert  de  la).  Des  Emaux  cloisonnes  et  de  leur  Intro- 
duction dans  la  Reliure  des  Livres.  Extract  from  Bulletin  de 
Bouquiniste  (1-15  December,  1869).  Pp.  16.  Paris,  1870. 
8vo. 

Flat  Ornament.  150  Plates.  6  Plates  of  designs  for  binding. 
London  (Batsford).  1886. 

Folious  Appearances :  a  consideration  on  our  ways  of  Lettering 
Books.  Pp.  24.  1854.  4to.  See  Tapling. 

Fougeroux  de  Bondaroy  (Auguste  Denis).  Art  de  Travailler  les 
Cuirs  dore's  ou  Argentes.  Pp.  42.  2  Plates.  Paris,  1762. 
Fol. 

Fournier  (Edouard).  L'art  de  la  Reliure  en  France  aux  derniers 
siecles.  Pp.  235.  Paris,  1864.  8vo.  Deuxieme  edition, 
1888.  Pp.  226. 

Franklin  (Alfred).  Precis  de  1'histoire  de  la  Bibliotheque  du  Roi, 
aujourd'hui  Bibliotheque  Nationale.  (2nd  Edition.  Revised 
and  augmented. )  Pp.  341.  Illustrated.  Paris,  1875.  8vo. 

Frisius  (Frid.).  Ceremoniel  der  Buchbinder.  Leipzig.  1728. 
8vo.  Mit  Titelkupfer. 

Fritzsche  (Gustav).  Anleitung  u.  Vorlagen  zur  Herstellung  ge- 
schnittener  u.  gepunzter  altdeutscher  Lederarbeiten.  4,  voll- 
standig]umgearbeitete  u.  verbesserte  Auflage  mit  128  originalen 
Zeichnungen  nebst  einem  Vorwort  v.  Dr.  A.  Weiske.  Leipzig, 
1887.  8vo. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  273 

Fritzsche  (Gustav).  Moderne  Buch-Einbande.  Sammlung  kiinst- 
lerischer  Original-Entwiirfe  znr  Ornamentirung  von  Buch- 
decken.  4  Hefte  u.  7  Chromolith.  Leipzig,  1878-79.,  Gr. 
Folio. 

Fritzsche  (Gustav).  Sinn-  u.  Denkspriiche  fur  Buchbinderei  Werk- 
statten.  Leipzig. 

Fritsche  (Gustav)  u.  Winckler.     See  Winckler  (Otto). 


Gauffecourt  (Caperonier  de).  Traite  sur  la  Reliure  des  Livres. 
Printed  by  the  author  at  his  country  house  at  Montbrillant, 
near  Geneve,  1763.  Pp.  72.  8vo.  Only  three  copies  extant 
known — one  was  included  in  the  second  library  of  Charles 
Nodier,  the  other  is  still  in  the  public  Library  of  Besan9on,  and 
a  third  in  the  possession  of  Mons.  Gruel. 

Gazette  des  Beaux-Arts,  1859,  &c.  Index  to  1st  series.  Vols. 
1-15,  1866.  Index  to  2nd  series.  Vols.  16-25,  1870. 
Numerous  Contributions  to  the  subject  of  Binding. 

Geraud  (H.).  Essais  sur  les  livres  dans  1'antiquite.  Pp.  xiv.  232. 
Paris,  1840.  8vo. 

Georg  (Johann).  Niitzliches  Stempffelbuch  von  Allerlei  krummen 
Villeten,  auch  saubern  Stempffeln,  zusammengesetzt  durch 
Johann  Georg ;  Schwertfeger,  Eisen,  Sigel,  Wappen,  und 
Stempffel,  Schneider  in  Niirnberg,  1697,  4to.  14  Copper 
Plates  (including  title  page). 

Greve  (Ernst  Wilh.).  Hand-  u.  Lehrbuch  der  Buchbinde-  u. 
Futteralmachekunst.  In  Briefen  an  einen  jungen  Kunstver- 
wandten,  &c.  Berlin,  1822-23.  2  Bande.  8vo.  II  Zeich- 
nungen  in  Steindruck.  2.  Ausgabe,  1832.  8vo. 

Grimm  (C.  H.).  Album  der  Relieur-Doreur.  Vorlegeblatter  fur 
Buchbinder  u.  Vergolder.  Lief.  1-8,  u.  10  Blatter.  Paris, 
1840-46.  J  Gr.  Folio. 

Grosse  (Edward).  Der  Gold-  und  Farbendruck  fur  Buchbinder. 
Vienna,  1889.  8vo. 

Gruel  (Leon).  Manuel  Historique  et  Bibliographique  del' Amateur 
de  Reliures.  Pp.  186.  70  Plates.  Paris,  1887.  4to. 


274  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Gruel  (Leon).  Notice  sur  Christophe  Plantin.  Extraite  du 
Journal  General  de  f  Imprimerie  et  de  la  Librairie  du  26 
Septembre,  1891.  Pp.  n.  2  Plates.  Paris,  1891.  8vo. 

Guide  des  Corps  des  Marchands  et  des  Communautes  des  Arts  et 
Metiers,  tant  de  la  Ville  et  Fauxbourgs  de  Paris  que  du  Roy- 
aume.  Un  volume  in-i2mo  de  496  pages  dans  lequel  se  trouve 
un  Resume  du  Reglement  de  la  Communaute  des  Relieurs  et 
Doreurs  de  Livres.  Paris,  1766. 

Guiffrey  (J.  J.).  Les  grands  relieurs  parisiens  du  xvme  siecle, 
Boyet,  Padeloup,  Derome.  Documents  nouveaux.  Pp.  15. 
8vo.  Extrait  du  Bulletin  de  la  Societe  de  f  Histoire  de  Paris, 
and  del' He  de  France.  Pp.  98-112.  ne  annee,  1884. 

Guigard  (Joanns).  Armorial  du  Bibliophile,  avec  illustrations  dans 
le  texte.  2  torn.  Paris,  1870-72.  8vo. 

Guigard  (Joannes).  Nouvel  Armorial  du  Bibliophile.  2  torn. 
Paris,  1890.  8vo. 

Haas  (H.  de).     De  boekbinder  of  al  hetgeen  wat  tot  die  Kunst 

betrekking  heeft.     Plates.     Dordrecht,  1806.     8vo. 
Halfer  (Josef).     Die  Fortschritte  der  Marmorirkunst.     Budapest, 

1885.     8vo. 

Another  Edition.     Stuttgart  [1891].     8vo.     [Forming  part 

of  Leo's  Buchbinder  Bibliothek.  ] 
Hall.      Bookbinders'  Patterns.     Two  parts.     4to.     Published  by 

W.  Day,  Bookbinders'  Tool  Cutter,  12  Middle  Row,  Holborn 

(with  prices). 
Handbook   of   Taste   in   Bookbinding.       New   edition.      Pp.  31. 

With  Illustrations.     London.     8vo.     Published  and  probably 

written  by  E.  Churton. 
Handbuch  der  Buchbinderei.     Wien,  1881. 
Hannett  (John).    Bibliopegia  ;  or,  the  Art  of  Bookbinding,  etc.    A 

New  Edition.     Pp.  ii.,  194.     10  Plates.     1842.     I2mo. 

Fourth  Edition.     Pp.  iv.,  166.     n  Plates.     London,  1848. 

I2mo. 

Sixth  Edition.     (2  Parts.)     London,  1865.     8vo.     Part  I  is 

another    copy  of   the   work    entitled  An    Inquiry   into   the 

Nature    .    .    .    of  the   Books  of  the  Ancients.      By  J.    A. 

Arnett.     With  a  new  title  page,  preface,  and  index. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  275 

Harper's  New  Monthly  Magazine,  1850,  &c.  Vol.  32.  Pp.  25-29, 
1865.  Binding.  Part  of  an  article  entitled  "Making  the 
Magazine."  Also  vol.  75.  Pp.  165-188.  July,  1875.  "A 
printed  Book."  This  article  also  appears  in  vol.  14  of  the 
European  edition.  Pp.  165-168.  July,  1887.  (The  title  page 
reading  "Harper's  Monthly  Magazine.")  The  European 
edition  commenced  with  vol.  62  of  the  American  edition, 
1881. 

Heuss  (Adam).  Wanderungen  und  Lebensansichten.  Jena,  1845, 
8vo. 

Hoe  (Robert).  A  Lecture  on  Bookbinding  as  a  Fine  Art.  63 
Illustrations.  New  York  Grolier  Club.  1886.  Small  4to. 

Hoffmann  (F.  C.).  Beitrage  zur  Bildung  gliicklicher  Handwerker 
mit  besonderer  Beziehung  auf  der  Buchbinder  Handwerk. 
Heft  I.  Wien,  1819.  8vo. 

Honer  (B.).  Die  Geheimnisse  der  Marmorirkunst,  nebst  einer 
Anleitung  zur  Farbenbereitung.  Futtlingen,  1870.  Gr.  l6mo. 

Horn  (Otto).  Die  Technik  der  Handvergoldung  und  Lederauflage. 
Mit  8  lith.  Tafeln.  Gera,  1887.  8vo. 

Horn  (Otto).  Vorlagen  zum  Verzieren  von  Gold-  und  Farbschnitten 
durch  Ciseliren,  Malen,  Drucken,  £c.  9  Tafeln  u.  Text.  Gera 
(Reusz).  1886.  410. 

Horn  (Otto)  u.  Ludwig  (E.).  Mustervorlagen  u.  Motive  zur  De- 
coration von  Buchdecken  und  Riicken.  Pp.  48.  41  lith. 
Tafeln  u.  Text.  Gera.  1885.  Gross  410. 

Horn  u.  Patzelt.  Vorlagen  fur  geschnittene  u.  gepunzte  Lederar- 
beiten.  Text  u.  16  Tafeln  in  Farbendruck.  Gera,  1887. 

Home  (Thomas  Hartwell).  An  Introduction  to  the  Study  of 
Bibliography.  2  vols.  Pp.  292-309.  London,  1814.  8vo. 
Article  on  Binding. 

Hour  Glass.  September,  1887.  A  Chat  about  Bookbinding.  Also 
issued  as  a  pamphlet  by  J.  W.  Zaehnsdorf. 

Houze  (J.  P.).  Le  livre  des  Metiers  manuels.  Pp.  387-393.  Paris, 
1882.  Svo.  Reliure. 

T  2 


276  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Howard  (Joseph  T.).  On  Ancient  Bindings  in  the  Library  of 
Westminster  Abbey  (London  and  Middlesex  Archaeological 
Transactions).  Vol.  2.  London.  1864.  8vo. 

Hiittner  (J.  Ch.).  Ueber  einige  bequeme  Vortheile  u.  Handgriffe 
in  der  Buchbinderei  in  England.  Tubingen,  1802.  8vo. 

Illustrirte  Zeitung  fur  Buchbinderei,  &c.    Dresden,  1867.     410.     A 

Trade  Journal. 
Industries  of  the  World.     2  vols.     London.     Vol.  2.     Pp.  676-7. 

Bookbinding. 
Ives  (Drayton).     Sale  Catalogue.     Illustrated.     New  York,  1891. 

Jacob  (Paul  L. ).     See  Lacroix  (Paul). 

Jacobi  (Charles  Thomas).  On  the  Making  and  Issuing  of  Books. 
London,  1891.  I2mo.  Chapter  vii.  The  Binding  of  Books. 

Jacobi  (Charles  Thomas).  The  Printer's  Handbook.  London, 
1887.  8vo. 

Jal  (Auguste).  Dictionnaire  critique  de  biographic  et  d'histoire. 
Paris,  1867.  8vo.  Contains  on  p.  1083  a  genealogy  of  the 
Derome  family.  2nd  edition.  Paris,  1872.  8vo. 

Jaugeon.  L'art  de  relier  les  Livres.  This  forms  the  5th  part  and 
completion  of  a  great  work,  "Description  et  Perfection  des 
Arts  et  Metiers."  The  MS.  has  never  been  printed.  It  was 
begun  in  1693  and  finished  in  1704.  The  part  relating  to 
binding  has  42  pages  of  text,  and  2  explanatory  plates  ;  these 
last  were  used  later  on  by  Dudin  in  his  "Art  du  Relieur-doreur 
des  livres,"  which  appeared  in  1772.  This  is  the  first  technical 
work  on  binding  known. 

Journal  der  neuesten  Fortschritte  in  der  Buchbinderei,  &c.,  &c. 
Weimar,  1844-54.  I. -III.  Band.  Gr.  410. 

Journal  fiir  Buchbinderei,  Lederwaaren,  u.  Cartonagen  Fabrikation. 
A  Trade  Journal.  Leipzig,  1 88 1.  Imp.  410. 

Journal  of  the  British  Archteological  Association.  Vol.  8.  Berthe- 
let's  bill  as  King's  printer,  for  books  sold  and  bound,  and  for 
statutes  and  proclamations  furnished  to  the  Government  in 
1541-1543.  London,  1853.  8vo.  Pp.  7. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  277 

Journal  of  the  Franklin  Institute  of  the  State  of  Pennsylvania, 
Philadelphia,  1867,  &c.  Year  1838  has  an  account  of  Hancock's 
patent  for  attaching  the  leaves  of  a  book  with  caoutchouc. 

Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts.  London,  1853,  &c.  Vols.  7,  22, 
24,  28,  36.  Articles  on  Binding,  &c. 

Julien  (le  Bibliophile).  Album  de  reliures  artistiques  et  historiques 
des  xvie,  xviie,  xvilieet  xixe  siecles,  accompagne  de  notes  ex- 
plicatives.  Paris,  1 866.  In  4  Parts.  410.  The  3  first  parts 
have  each  24  Plates,  the  4th  has  28.  All  the  Plates  but  the  last 
3  in  Part  4  appeared  in  Le  Bibliophile  Franfais. 

Karmarsch  und  Heeren's  Technisches  Worterbuch.  Pp.  109-125. 
Band  2.  Prag,  1876,  &c.  Buchbinderarbeiten. 

Katalog  der  im  germanischen  Museum.    See  Catalog. 

Kellen  (David  Van  der).  Le  Moyen  Age  et  la  Renaissance  dans 
les  Pays-Bas.  La  Haye  [1865-79],  fol.  Contains  2  plates  of 
silver  book  covers  and  ornaments. 

Kunst-  u.  Lehrbuch  fur  Buchbinder,  worin  alle  Handarbeiten  die  zur 
Dauer  u.  Zierde  eines  Buches  gereichen,  moglichst  genau  be- 
schrieben.  Landshut,  1820.  2  Theile. 

Labarte  (Jules).  Histoire  des  Arts  Industriels  au  Moyen  Age.  10 
fine  Plates  of  jewelled  and  ivory  book-covers.  4  torn,  and 
album.  Paris,  1864-66.  8vo. 

Labarte  (Jules).     Deuxieme  edition.    3  torn.    Paris,  1872-75.     410. 

Laborde  (Comte  de).  Les  Dues  de  Bourgogne.  3  vols.  Paris, 
1849-52.  8vo. 

Laboulaye  (C.).  Dictionnaire  des  Arts  ct  Manufactures.  Paris, 
1845,  &c.  Col.  3188-92.  Reliure. 

Lacroix  (Paul  [Le  Bibliophile  Jacob]).  Les  Arts  au  Moyen  Age  et  a 
1'epoque  de  la  Renaissance.  Pp.  467-81.  Reliure.  Paris, 
1869.  8vo. 

Lacroix  (Paul  [Le  Bibliophile  Jacob]).  Le  Moyen  Age  et  la  Renais- 
sance. 8  Plates.  Tom.  v.  Reliure.  Paris,  1848-51. 


278  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Lacroix  (Paul  [Le  Bibliophile  Jacob]).  Arts  of  the  Middle  Ages. 
Chapter  on  Bookbinding.  Pp.  14.  12  Illustrations.  London. 
1870. 

Lacroix  (Paul  [Le  Bibliophile  Jacob]).  La  Reliure  depuis  1'anti- 
quite  jusqu'au  xvne  siecle.  Extrait  de  20  pages  in  I2mo,  des 
Curiosites  de  FHistoire  des  Arts.  Paris,  1858. 

[ ]  Jacob  (Paul  L. ).    Catalogue  des  livres  du  bibliotheque  de 

la  Comtesse  de  Barry,  avec  les  prix  a  Versailles,  1771.  Paris, 
1874.  i6mo.  100  copies  only.  A  reprint  from  the  original 
MS.  with  Note  and  Preface  by  the  bibliophile  Jacob. 

[ ]  Jacob  (Paul  L.).     Curiosites  de  1'histoire  des  arts.     Pp. 

157-181.  Paris,  1858.  i6mo.  La  reliure  depuis  1'antiquite 
jusqu'au  dix-septieme  siecle. 

La  Fizeliere  (Albert  de).  Des  Emaux  cloisonnes  et  de  leur  intro- 
duction dans  la  reliure  des  livres.  Pp.  16.  Paris,  1870.  8vo. 
Extract  from  the  Bulletin  du  Bouquiniste.  December  i  and 
15,  1869. 

Lalanne  (Ludovic).  Curiosites  bibliographiques.  Paris,  1857. 
I2mo. 

Lami  (E.  O.)  and  Tharel  (A.).  Dictionnaire  encyclopedique  et 
biographique  de  1'industrie  et  des  arts  industriels.  Pp.  771-8. 
Illustrations  in  text.  Reliure.  Paris,  1881,  &c.  Tom  7. 

Lang  (Andrew).  Books  and  Bookmen.  Bibliomania  in  France. 
Pp.  90-108.  2  Plates  of  Bindings.  London,  1886.  8vo.  In 
the  New  York  edition,  1886,  pp.  95-107,  is  an  Article  on 
Bookbinding,  which  does  not  appear  in  the  London  edition. 

Lang  (Andrew).  The  Library.  Pp.  63-73  and  114-120.  2  Plates 
of  Bindings.  London,  1881.  8vo.  Second  Edition,  1892, 
with  different  Plates. 

La  Roche  Lacarelle  (S.  de).  Catalogue  des  livres  rares  .  .  .  com- 
posant  la  bibliotheque  de  feu  le  Baron  S.  de  la  Roche  Lacarelle. 
Pp.  xv.  190.  40  Plates  of  Bindings  and  21  Facsimiles  of  Titles. 
Paris,  1888.  Roy.  4to. 

Lauri  (E.  O.).  Dictionnaire  encyclopedique  et  biographique  de 
1'industrie  et  des  arts  industriels.  Paris,  1886.  8vo.  Reliure. 
Vol.  7.  436e  livraison. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  279 

Le  Dieu  (Aldus).  Les  reliures  artistiques  et  armories  de  la  Biblio- 
theque  Communale  d' Abbeville.  Pp.  127.  18  Plates  and  71 
Illustrations  in  the  text.  Paris,  1891.  4to.  50  copies  only. 

Le  Livre.  Revue  mensuelle.  Bibliographic  ancienne  et  retro- 
spective. Paris,  1880,  &c.  8vo.  Contains  "  La  reliure 
illustre."  "  Nouvel  armorial  du  bibliophile  Joannes  Guigard." 

Leighton  (John).  Notes  on  Books  and  Bindings.  A  card  to  be 
suspended  in  the  library.  100  copies.  Printed  from  Notes  and 
Queries. 

Leighton  (John).  On  the  Library  Books  and  Binding,  &c.  Journal 
of  the  Society  of  Arts,  1859.  Vol.  7.  Pp.  209-219. 

Leischner  (C.  F.).  Liniir-Kunst.  Ein  Handbuch  fur  Liniirer  u. 
Buchbinder.  Weimar,  1867.  8vo.  Mit  Atlas  and  15  Lang- 
Foliotafeln. 

Lemerre  (Alphonse).  Le  Livre  du  Bibliophile.  Includes  a  chapter 
on  Binding.  Pp.  50.  Paris.  1874.  i8mo. 

Lempertz  (Heinrich).  Bilderhefte  zur  Geschichte  des  Biicher- 
handels  und  der  mit  demselben  verwandten  Ku'nste  u.  Gewerbe. 
65  Plates.  Contains  10  fine  Plates,  with  explanatory  matter, 
chiefly  of  stamped  and  painted  bindings  of  the  I4th,  I5th,  and 
l6th  centuries.  Coin,  1853-65.  Folio. 

Lenormand  (L.  S. ).  Die  Buchbinderkunst  in  alien  ihren  Verrich- 
tungen,  oder  Handbuch  fur  Buchbinder  u.  Liebhaber  dieser 
Kunst.  Ulm,  1832.  Gr.  I2mo.  Aus  dem  Franzosischen. 

Lenormand  (L.  S.).  Handboek  voor  den  Boekbinder,  bijzonder 
met  betrekking  tot  de  nieuwste  Engelsche  en  Fransche  verbete- 
ringen.  Naar  bet  Fransch.  Amsterdam,  1843.  8vo. 

Lenormand  (L.  S.).  Nouveau  Manuel  complet  du  Relieur  en  tous 
genres.  Pp.  viii.  424.  4  Explanatory  Plates.  Paris,  1879. 
I2mo.  One  of  the  collection  of  Manuels  Roret,  of  which  there 
are  several  editions,  the  first  appearing  in  1825. 

Lenormand  (L.  S.).  Praktisches  Handbuch  der  Buchbinderkunst 
nach  dem  Franzosischen  bearbeitet.  Quedlinburg,  1835.  8vo. 


280  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Leo  (Wilhelm).  Anleitungen  u.  Recepte  fiir  die  Buchbinder  Werk- 
statt.  5.  Auflage.  Stuttgart,  1885.  Gr.  8vo. 

Leo  (Wilhelm).     Buchbinder-Kalender.     Stuttgart,  1891.     I2mo. 

Le  Petit  (Jules).  L'art  d'aimer  les  Livres  et  de  les  connaitre. 
Lettres  a  un  jeune  bibliophile.  Letters  xvi.  and  xvii.  Paris, 
1884.  I2mo. 

Le  Prince  (Nic.  Thorn.)  and  Paris  (Louis).  Essai  historique  sur 
la  Bibliotheque  du  Roi,  aujourd i'hui  Bibliotheque  imperiale. 
Nouvelle  edition,  revue  et  augtnentee  par  Louis  Paris.  Re- 
liures,  pp.  200-204.  Paris,  1856.  I2mo. 

Le  Roux  de  Lincy  (A.  J.  V.).  Notice  sur  la  Bibliotheque  de 
Catherine  de  Medicis,  avec  des  extraits  de  1'inventaire  de  cette 
Bibliotheque.  Pp.  34.  Paris,  1858.  8vo. 

Le  Roux  de  Lincy  (A.  J.  V.).  Recherches  sur  Jean  Grolier,  sur  sa 
vie  et  sa  bibliotheque,  suivies  d'un  catalogue  des  livres  qui  lui 
ont  appartenu.  Pp.  xlix.  491.  6  Planches  et  Facsimile  (sepa- 
rately). Paris,  1866.  8vo. 

Les  Catalogues  de  livres  et  les  Bibliophiles  contemporains.  Preface 
au  Catalogue  de  livres  curieux  de  M.  Auguste  Fontaine  par 
P.  L.  Jacob,  bibliophile.  Paris,  1877.  Pp.  24.  8vo. 

Lesne.  A  la  gloire  Immortelle  des  Inventeurs  de  I'lmprimerie. 
Pp.  ii.  Paris. 

Lesne.  Epitre  a  Thouvenin  [on  French  and  English  Bookbinding]. 
Pp.  20.  Paris,  1823. 

Lesne.  La  Reliure.  Poeme  didactique  en  six  chants.  Pp.  246. 
Paris,  1820.  8vo.  Seconde  edition,  dediee  aux  amateurs  de 
la  Reliure.  Paris,  1827.  Large  8vo,  120  numbered  copies. 
This  edition  contains  the  Dedication  and  Preface  to  the  first 
edition  of  1820,  the  "  Memoire  relatif  aux  moyens  de  perfec- 
tionnement  propres  a  faire  retarder  de  plusieurs  siecles  le  renou- 
vellement  des  Relieures,"  the  "  Epitre  a  Thouvenin,"  and  the 
"  Lettre  d'un  Relieur  fra^ais  a  un  Bibliographe  anglais." 

Lesne.  La  Reliure.  Poeme.  Pp.  viii.  99.  8vo.  With  the  notes 
of  Luigi  Odorici. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  281 

Lesne.  Lettre  d'un  Relieur  frai^ais  a  un  Bibliographe  anglais. 
Pp.  28.  Paris,  1822.  8vo.  A  reply  to  Dibdin's  Criticism  of 
French  Binders  in  his  Bibliographical  Tour. 

Lesne.  Lettre  d'un  Relieur  fran9ais  aux  principaux  Imprimeurs, 
Libraires,  Relieurs  et  Bibliophiles  de  1'Europe.  Pp.  18.  Paris, 
1834.  8vo. 

Library,  The.  A  magazine  of  Bibliography  and  Literature. 
London,  1889.  8vo.  Articles  and  Notes  on  Binding  :  Vol.  i., 
pp.  26,  38,  76,  in,  148,  228,  259;  vol.  ii.,  pp.  225,  272; 
vol.  iii.,  pp.  181,  251,  287. 

Library  Journal,  The.  New  York,  1876,  &c.  Nearly  every 
number  has  something  relating  to  Bookbinding. 

Libri  (Guillaume).  Monuments  inedits  ou  peu  connus  faisant  partie 
du  cabinet  de  G.  Libri,  et  qui  se  rapportent  a  1'histoire  des  arts 
du  dessin  considered  dans  leur  application  a  1'ornement  des 
livres.  Pp.  14.  65  plates.  Londres,  1862.  Folio.  The 
Second  Edition  of  1864  contains  a  supplement  of  five  additional 
plates,  indicated  by  alphabetical  letters.  The  text  is  in  French 
and  English. 

Lievre  (Edouard).  Les  Arts  decoratifs  a  toutes  les  epoques. 
2  Plates  of  Bindings  [Nos.  1 8  and  35],  of  which  Plate  18  is 
good  metal  work.  2  torn.  Paris,  1870.  Fol. 

Lindsay,  J.  L.  {Earl  of  Crawford).  Early  Bindings  exhibited  at 
the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  London,  1886.  410. 

Loftie  { W.  J. ).    A  Plea  for  Art  in  the  House.    Pp.  75-80.    London, 

1876.  8vo. 

Louisy  (P.).  Le  Livre  et  les  arts  qui  s'y  rattachent,  depuis  les 
origines  jusqu'a  la  fin  du  xvine  siecle.  Pp.  113-140.  Reliure. 
221  Illustrations.  Paris,  1886.  8vo.  Taken  from  the  works 
of  Paul  Lacroix  on  the  Middle  Ages  and  the  Renaissance,  the 
1 7th  and  i8th  centuries. 

Loupot  (E.).  Du  Livre  et  de  la  Reliure.  Extract  from  Le  Phare. 
March  I5th,  1879. 

MacCallum  (S.  B.).    Bookbinding  at  Home.  Pp.  14.  2nd  Edition. 

1877.  London.     8vo. 


282  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Magasin  Pittoresque.  Pp.  52-54.  Paris,  1833,  &c.  4to.  1836. 
De  la  Reliure,  1874.  Pp.  279-80,  283-4.  La  Reliure  chez 
soi. 

Magazine  of  Art,  The.  Vol.  5.  1882.  Pp.  146-51.  London, 
1878,  &c.  Book  Decoration,  Historical  and  Artistic. 
Illustrated. 

Mairet  (F. ).  Traite  sur  la  Lithographic — followed  by  Essai  sur  la 
Reliure.  Pp.  220.  Chatillon-sur-Seine,  1824.  8vo. 

Manuscrits  precieux  (Collection  de  Mme.  la  Duchesse  de  B.  .  . ). 
Dans  ce  catalogue  se  trouve  la  description  de  la  reliure  du 
petit  Livre  d'heures  de  Henri  II.  Paris,  1864.  8vo. 

Marius-Michel.  Essai  sur  la  Decoration  exterieure  des  livres.  Pp. 
1 6.  Paris,  1878.  8vo. 

Marius  Michel.  L'Ornementatipn  des  Reliures  modernes.  Pp. 
78.  15  Plates.  Paris,  1889.  410. 

Marius-Michel.  La  Reliure  fran£aise  commerciale  et  industrielle 
depuis  1'invention  de  I'lmprimerie  jusqu'a  nos  jours.  Pp.  137. 
23  Plates.  Paris,  1881.  410. 

Marius-Michel.  La  Reliure  fran9aise  depuis  1'invention  de  I'lm- 
primerie jusqu'a  la  fin  du  xvine  siecle.  Pp.  144.  22  Plates. 
Paris,  1880.  4to. 

Matthews  (Brander).  The  Grolier  Club.  Article  in  the  Century 
Magazine,  November,  1889.  Several  Illustrations  of  Bindings. 

Matthews  (William).  Modern  Bookbinding  practically  considered. 
A  lecture  read  before  the  Grolier  Club  of  New  York,  March 
25,  1885.  With  additions  and  new  illustrations.  Pp.  96.  9 
Plates  and  Portrait.  New  York  Grolier  Club,  1889.  410. 

Maul  (Johannes).  Deutsche  Bucheinbande  der  Neuzeit ;  Samm- 
lung  ausgefiihrter  Arbeiten  aus  deutschen  Werkstatten.  40 
Plates  with  text  in  portfolio.  Leipzig,  1888.  Folio. 

Menard  (Rene).  Histoire  artistique  du  Metal,  i  Plate  of  a 
jewelled  cover  of  a  MS.  Paris,  1881.  410. 

Meyers'  Konversations-Lexikon.  Buchbinden.  Pp.  544-547. 
Band  3.  Leipzig,  1885,  &c. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  283 

Minzloff  (Carl  Rudolf).  Notice  sur  les  reliures  anciennes  de  la 
Bibliotheque  Imperiale  de  Saint  Petersbourg.  Pp.  39.  Paris, 
1859.  8vo. 

Miscellanees  Bibliographiques  publiees  par  Edouard  Rouveyre.  3 
vols.  Paris,  1878,  1879,  1880.  8vo. 

La  Misere  des  Apprentis  Papetiers-Colleurs,  Relieurs  et  Doreurs  de 
Livres.  Pp.  16  (extrait  des  MisZres  de  ce  Monde).  Paris,  1747. 
I2mo. 

Mitteilung  des  Bundes  deutscher  Buchbinder-Innungen.  Monthly 
Trade  Journal.  Munich. 

Monatschrift  fur  Buchbinder.     Friedrich  Pfeilstucker.     Berlin. 

Monuments  Fran9ais  Inedits.  Vol.  2.  No.  287.  1839.  Fol. 
Couverture  d'un  MS.  grec,  du  xvie  siecle  execute  pour  Henri 
II. 

Morante.  Catalogue  illustre  de  la  bibliotheque  de  feu  M.  le 
Marquis  de  Morante,  precede  d'une  notice  biographique  par 
M.  Fr.  Asenjo  Barbieri  et  de  quelques  mots  sur  cette  biblio- 
theque par  M.  Paul  Lacroix.  34  Plates.  Paris,  1872.  8vo. 

Morgand-Fatout.  Bulletin  mensuel  de  la  librairie  Morgand  et 
Fatout.  55  Plates.  Paris,  1876  to  1890.  8vo. 

Murr  (Christoph  Gottlieb  von).  De  Papyris  seu  Voluminibus 
Graecis  Herculanensibus  Commentatio.  Pp.  59.  2  Plates. 
Argentorati,  1804.  8vo. 

Musterblatter  fur  Buchbinder  u.  Vergolder.  I.  und  II.  Heft.  6 
Plates.  Leipzig.  1842.  Folio. 

Musterblatter  zu  den  elegantesten  und  modernsten  Galanterie- 
arbeiten  fur  Buchbinder,  Papparbeiter  und  Dilettanten.  1 
Lief.  Mit  4  Steintaf.  in  4  Lex.  Quedlinburg  und  Leipzig, 
1843.  8vo. 


Namur  (Jean  Pie).  Manuel  du  Bibliothecaire.  Part  II.  Chap. 
VII.  and  VIII.  Bruxelles,  1834.  8vo. 

Netto  (F.  A.  W.).  Neueste  Geheimnisse  u.  Erfindungen  fiir  Buch- 
binder, &c.  Mit  21  Abbildungen.  Pp.  39.  Quedlinburg, 
1845.  8vo. 


284  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Nicholson  (James  B. ).  A  Manual  of  the  Art  of  Bookbinding.  Pp. 
318.  12  Plates,  and  several  examples  of  Marbling.  Phila- 
delphia, 1882.  PostSvo. 

Nodier  (Charles).  De  la  Reliure  en  France  au  dix-neuvieme 
siecle.  Pp.  8.  Paris,  1834.  Extract  from  the  Bulletin  du 


Nordhoff(T.  B.).  Buchbinder  Kunst  u.  Handwerk  in  Westfalen. 
Aus  der  Zeitschrift  fiir  Geschichte  in  Alterthumskunde  West- 
falens.  39.  Band.  8vo. 

Notes  and  Queries.  London,  1850,  &c.  First  Series,  ii.  308  ;  vi. 
94,  289;  ix.  401,  423.  Second  Series,  v.  131,  247;  viii. 
511  ;  ix.  196  ;  xi.  169,  194,  230;  xii,  35.  Third  Series,  vii. 
I38>  329,  365.  Fourth  Series,  xi.  302,  392  ;  xii.  208.  Fifth 
Series,  iv.  366,  472;  vi.  109,  no;  vii.  169,  273;  xii.  328, 
358,  517.  Sixth  Series,  i.  504;  ii.  259,  6,  136  ;  v.  127,  235, 
295;  viii.  305,  496;  ix.  118.  Seventh  Series,  ii.  444;  vi. 
148,  86,  236,  398,  472  ;  vii.  283,  354 ;  viii.  348,  477 ;  ix.  307. 

Notitia  utraque  cum  Orientis  turn  Occidentis,  ultra  Arcadii  Hono- 
riique  Csesarum  Tempora.  Basileas,  1552.  Fol. 


Palumbo  (Ernesto).  Norme  generali  per  la  legatura  dei  periodici 
nelle  pubbliche  biblioteche.  Pp.  21.  Firenze,  1888.  I2mo. 

Paper  and  Press.  A  Monthly  Trade  Journal,  with  a  department 
devoted  to  Bookbinding.  Philadelphia,  1890,  £c. 

Paris  (Alexis  Paulin).  Les  MSS.  fran9ais  de  la  Bibliotheqne  du 
Roi.  6  vols.  in  3.  Paris,  1836-1848.  8vo.  Vol.  4  contains 
letter  by  M.  Jerome  Pichon  to  M.  Paulin  Paris  on  the  bindings 
of  De  Thou. 

Parry  (H.).  The  Art  of  Bookbinding.  Pp.92.  London,  1817. 
8vo. 

Paton  (James).  Encyclopaedia  Britannica.  Article  on  Book- 
binding. 

Payne  (J.  T.).  Catalogue  (sale)  of  the  Collection  of  Books  and 
Miniatures.  By  J.  T.  Payne.  9  Plates  of  bindings.  April 
10,  1878. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  285 

Peignot  (Etienne  Gabriel).     Dictionnaire  raisonne  de  Bibliologie. 

3  vols.     Pp.  158-160.     Vol.  2.     Pp.  270-275.     Vol  3.     Paris, 
1802-4.     8vo. 

Peignot  ( Ktienne  Gabriel).  Essai  historique  et  archeologique  sur 
la  Reliure  des  livres  et  sur  1'etat  de  la  librairie  chez  les  anciens. 
Pp.  84,  2  Plates.  Dijon  et  Paris,  1834.  8vo.  200  copies 
only  printed. 

Peignot  (Etienne  Gabriel).  Manuel  du  Bibliophile,  ou  Traite  du 
choix  des  livres.  2  vols.  Vol.  2.  Pp.  434-442.  Dijon, 
1823.  8vo.  De  la  reliure  des  livres. 

Penny  Magazine,  The.     London.     1832-45.     Year  1833. 
Philomneste  Junior.      See  Brunet  (Gustave). 

Pichon  (A.).  Lettre  a  Monsieur  Paulin  Paris  sur  les  Reliures  de 
la  Bibliotheque  du  President  de  Thou. 

Pichon  (Jerome,  Baron).  Vie  de  Charles  Henry,  Comte  d'Hoym. 
2  vols.  Vol.  I,  Chap.  IV.  4  Plates.  Paris,  1880.  8vo.  De 
la  Bibliotheque  du  Comte  d'Hoym  et  de  son  gout  pour  les 
livres. 

Portafoglio  dell'  Arti.  Art  Journal  with  occasional  Plates  of 
Bindings.  Venice,  1890,  etc.  Folio. 

Portafoglio  delle  Arti  decorative  in  Italia.  Venezia,  1890-91.  Folio. 
Monthly  periodical.  Four  Parts,  continued  as  Arte  Itaiiana. 

4  Plates  of  Bindings. 

Power  (John).  A  Hahdybook  about  Books  for  Book-lovers,  Book- 
buyers,  and  Booksellers.  Pp.  xiv.  217.  London,  1870.  8vo. 

Pozzoli  (Giulio).  Manuale  di  tipografia,  owero  guida  pratica  pei 
legatori  di  libri.  Milano,  1861.  8vo.  Con  figure. 

Pozzoli  (Giulio).  Nuovo  manuale  di  tipografia.  Dritto  edizione 
Pp.  lii.,  464.  Milano,  1882.  8vo. 

Practical  Magazine,  i  Illustration.  I  page  letterpress.  London, 
1873-76,  1873.  Bookbinding  in  the  i6th  century. 

Pratt  (Q.  T.)  versus  Fraser.  Being  a  cause  argued  and  determined 
in  the  Court  of  King's  Bench,  Westminster,  on  Thursday, 
June  6,  1811,  before  the  Right  Hon.  Lord  Ellenborough,  C.J. 
London,  1811. 


286  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Prideaux  (S.  T.). 

1.  Embroidered  Bookcovers,  Metal  Ornament  of  Bound  Books, 
Book-edge  Decoration.     Magazine  of  Art  for  1890-91.     Five 
articles.     Illustrated. 

2.  Introduction  to  the  Catalogue  of   the  Exhibition  of  Book- 
bindings at  the  Burlington  Fine  Arts  Club.  1891. 

3.  Blind-tooled  Pigskin.     British  Book  Maker.     January,  1892. 
Illustrated. 

4.  Du  Seuil.     Antiquary,  May,  1892. 

Prediger  (Chr.  Ernst).  Der  in  alien  heut  zu  Tagiiblichen  Arbeit 
wohl  anweisende  accurate  Buchbinder  u.  Futteralmacher.  4 
Bande.  Frankfurt  und  Leipzig,  1741-53.  8vo. 

Publishers'  Circular.  London,  1838,  &c.  Numerous  Trade 
Notices. 


Quaritch  (Bernard).  Catalogue  of  Books,  &c.  Supplement  I. 
Examples  of  Bookbinding.  London,  1889.  4to. 

Quaritch  (Bernard).  Facsimiles  of  choice  examples  of  Historical 
and  Artistic  Bookbinding  in  the  I5th  and  i6th  centuries.  103 
Plates  printed  in  gold  and  colours.  London,  1889.  410. 

Quaritch  (Bernard).  General  Catalogue.  6  vols.  London,  1888. 
8vo.  Vol.  2  has  6  pp.  on  bindings.  See  also  Article  on 
Bookbinding  in  Vol.  8  of  the  Antiquarian  Magazine. 

Quentin-Bauchat  (Ern. ).  Les  femmes  bibliophiles.  2  vols.  Paris, 
1866.  8vo.  Numerous  Plates. 

Queriere  (E.  de  la).  Recherches  sur  le  Cuir  dore,  anciennement 
appele  or  basane.  I  Plate.  Rouen,  1830.  8vo. 


Racinet  (Auguste).    L'Ornement  Polychrome.    2  plates  of  bindings. 
Paris  [1869-87].    Folio. 

Racinet  (Auguste).     Polychromatic  Ornament.     2  plates  of  bind- 
ings.   London,  1873.     Folio. 

Reber  (P.).     Die  Kunst  des  Vergoldens  bei  der  Buchbinderei,  &c., 
&c.    Heilbronn.    2.  Auflage,  1845.     8vo. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  287 

Relieurs.  Arrets,  Memoires,  &c.  5  pieces  en  4,  dereliees.  Arret 
du  II  Janvier  1698  portant  defenses  de  recevoir  a  la  maitrise 
d'imprimerie  et  de  librairie  aucun  fils  de  relieur. — Arret  du  26 
juillet  1700  qui  permet  aux  relieurs  de  continuer  a  relier  a  la 
grecque  tous  les  petits  usages,  livres  classiques  et  autres  petits 
livres. — Sentence  du  6  mai  1712  qui  ordonne  que  les  relieurs  et 
doreurs  feront  des  apprentis. — Sentence  entre  les  maitres  relieurs 
et  doreurs  et  les  maitres  peaussiers-teinturiers  en  cuirs  con- 
cernant  les  achats  des  cuirs  de  peau  de  veaux  dits  d'alun  du 
10  juillet  1714. 

La  Reliure.  Journal  of  the  French  Bookbinders'  Society.  Monthly. 
1891. 

Revue  de  la  Relieur  Fran9aise.     Monthly  Trade  Journal.     1891, 

&c. 

Richardson  (H.  S.).  Catalogue  of  Antiquities  and  Works  of  Art 
exhibited  at  Ironmongers'  Hall,  London.  May,  1861.  410. 
Contains  a  descriptive  account  of  bookbindings  exhibited,  with 
3  Illustrations,  and  introduction  by  H.  S.  Richardson. 

Richardson  (H.  S.).  Examples  of  Ancient  Bookbindings.  A 
portfolio  of  rubbings  in  the  possession  of  the  Art  Library  of 
South  Kensington  Museum.  1860. 

Rogers  (Walter  Thomas).  Manual  of  Bibliography.  Pp.  84-97. 
5  Illustrations.  London,  1891.  8vo.  Article  on  Binding. 

Rooses  (Max).  Compte  Rendu  de  la  Premiere  Session  de  la  Con- 
ference du  Livre  tenue  a  Anvers  au  mois  d'Aout,  1890. 
Anvers,  1891.  4to.  Contains  a  few  remarks  on  binding,  and 
on  page  74,  a  coloured  facsimile  of  a  binding  from  the  Library 
of  Matthias  Corvinus,  King  of  Hungary. 

Rosier  (C.  G.).  Sammlung  von  Musterbildern,  verschiedene 
Zusammenstellungen  fur  Buchbinder  Arbeiten  mit  besonderer 
Beriicksichtigung  auf  Biicher  Einbande.  7  Hefte.  Niirnberg, 
1834-36.  Gr.  folio. 

Rothschild  (Nathan  James  Edward  de).  Catalogue  des  livres 
composant  la  Bibliotheque  de  feu  M.  le  baron  James  de 
Rothschild.  Preface  de  M.  Emile  Picot.  5  Plates.  Paris, 
1884.  8vo.  Privately  printed. 


288  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Rouaix  (Paul).  Dictionnaire  des  arts  decoratifs.  Paris,  1885. 
8vo.  Contains  article  of  4  pp.  on  Binding,  with  2  Illustrations 
in  text. 

Rouveyre  (Edouard).  Connaissances  necessaires  a  un  Bibliophile. 
2  vols.  8  Plates.  Paris.  3rd  edition.  1879-80.  8vo. 

Rudolph  (C.  F.).  Der  reisende  Buchbindergeselle,  oder  merk- 
wiirdige  u.  bewundernwiirdige  Fata  eines  reisenden  Buch- 
bindergesellen.  Stockholm,  1753.  Mit  Titelkupfer.  8vo. 

Rudolph  (C.  F.).  De  reizende  boekbinders  gezel.  Rotterdam, 
1754.  8vo. 


Saint-Genois  (Jules  de).  Les  Couvertures  et  feuilles  de  garde  des 
vieux  livres  et  des  manuscrits.  Pp.  16.  Paris.  1874.  8vo. 

Savary  (],).  Dictionnaire  universel  de  Commerce.  Paris,  173°- 
3  vols.  Folio.  Contains  small  Treatise  on  Binding. 

Schade  (T.  A.  F.).    Die  Marmorirkunst.  Berlin,  1845.    8vo. 

Schaefer  (L.).  Vollstandiges  Handbuch  der  Buchbinderkunst. 
Quedlinburg,  1845.  8vo. 

Schmidt  (C.  R.  Ernst).  Der  sich  vervollkommende  Buchbinder 
oder  die  Schnittmarmoriru.  Vergoldekunst  in  der  Buchbinderei . 
Weimar,  1850.  i6mo. 

Schmidt- Weissenfels.  Zwolf  Buchbinder.  Historisch-novellistische 
Bilder  der  bemerkenswerthesten  Zunftgenossen.  Halle,  1881. 
i6mo. 

Schrift  en  Schriftkunst,  het  boekdrukken  staalgraveerkunst,  het 
steendrukken  en  het  boekbinden.  Leiden,  1874. 

Schwarz  (Christian  Gottlieb).  De  libris  plicatilibus  veterum. 
Pp.  24.  Altorf,  1717.  4to. 

Schwarz  (Christian  Gottlieb).  De  Ornamentis  Librorum.  Pp.  240. 
5  Plates.  Leipzig,  1756.  4to. 

Schweizerische  Buchbinderzeitung.  Published  by  Master  Book- 
binders' Society  of  Zurich.  Monthly. 

Sebald  (E.).  Der  Einband  schwerer  Geschafts-,  Kassen-  u.  Kirchen- 
biicher.  Neustadt  a.  Dosse. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  289 

Semler  (Johann  Salome).  Sammlungen  zur  Geschichte  der 
Formschneidekunst.  Pp.  166.  Leipzig,  1782.  8vo. 

Sendmaud  (Edouard).  Un  document  inedit  sur  Antonius  Verard. 
Renseignements  sur  le  prix  des  reliures  des  miniatures  et  des 
imprimes  sur  ve'lin  au  xv«  siecle.  Pp.  7.  Angouleme,  1859. 
8vo. 

Shaw  (Henry).     Decorative  Arts  of  the  Middle  Ages.     I  Plate  of 
Grolier  binding,  and  I  page  of  descriptive  letterpress.    London 
1851.     Folio. 

Shaw  (Henry).  Encyclopaedia  of  Ornament.  6  plates  of  bindings. 
London,  1842.  410. 

Sister  Arts  ;  or,  a  Concise  and  Interesting  view  of  Paper-making, 
Printing,  and  Bookbinding.  With  3  Engravings.  104  pp. 
Sussex  Press,  Lewes,  1809.  i8mo. 

Slater  (J.  H.).  Book  Collecting  :  a  Guide  for  Amateurs.  Contains 
a  chapter  on  bindings  old  and  new.  London,  1892.  8vo. 

Souvenir  de  1'Exposition  de  M.  Dutuit.  Extrait  de  sa  Collection. 
Pp.  107.  34  Plates.  Paris  Union  Centrale  des  Beaux-Arts 
applique's  a  1'Industrie,  1869.  4to. 

Spon  (Ernest).  Workshop  Receipts.  London,  1885.  8vo.  1st 
Series. 

Statuts  et  Reglements  pour  la  communaute  des  maistres  relieurs  et 
doreurs  de  livres  de  la  Ville  et  University  de  Paris,  entrepris  et 
rediges  du  terns  et  par  les  soins  des  sieurs  Bonnet,  Alexis 
Ducastin,  P.  Anguerrandet  Monvoisin  ;  obtenus  du  temps  et  par 
les  soins  des  sieurs  P.  Anguerrand,  Monvoisin,  Auvray  et 
Boutault  et  enregistres  et  imprimes  du  temps  et  par  les  soins 
des  sieurs  Auvray,  Coutault,  Sauvage  et  Badeirre,  tous  anciens 
gardes  en  charge  de  ladite  communaute.  Paris,  Le  Mercier, 
1750.  I2mo. 

Steche(Rich.).  Zur  Geschichte  des  Bucheinbands,  mit  Beriicksich- 
tigung  seiner  Entwickelung  in  Sachsen.  Zur  Habilitation. 
Dresden,  1877.  8vo. 

Steche  (Rich.).  Zur  Geschichte  des  Bucheinbands.  Aus  dem 
Archiv  fur  Geschichte  des  Deutschen  Buchhandels  I.  abge- 
druckt.  Leipzig,  1878.  8vo. 

U 


290  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Stevens  (Henry).  Who  spoils  our  new  English  Books?  A  Lecture 
read  before  the  Library  Association.  Reprinted  as  a  small 
book,  1884. 

Stockbauer  (Jacob).  Abbildungen  von  Mustereinbanden  aus  der 
Bliithezeit  der  Buchbinderkunst.  In  Lichtdriick  ausgefuhrt. 
Mit  ein  leitendem  Texte  von  Dr.  J.  Stockbauer.  Pp.  13.  Mil 
40  Tafeln.  Leipzig,  1 88 1.  410.  See  also  Wallis(A.)  and  La 
Dorure  sur  Cuir. 

Tapling  (John).  Folious  Appearances — a  consideration  on  our 
ways  of  lettering  books.  London,  1854,  Published  anony- 
mously, but  a  paragraph  in  Notes  and  Queries  states  that  John 
Tapling  was  the  author. 

Techener  (Jacques  Joseph  and  Joseph  Leon).  Histoire  de  la  Biblio- 
phile. Reliures  recherchees  sur  les  bibliotheques  des  plus 
celebres  amateurs.  Armorial  des  Bibliophiles.  47  Plates  en- 
graved by  Jacquemart.  Paris,  1 86 1.  Fol. 

Techener  (Joseph  Leon).  Catalogue  de  livres  precieux  composant 
la  bibliotheque  de  M.  J.  L.  T.  2  parts.  Paris,  1886-7.  8vo. 
Facsimiles  of  bindings,  9  Plates  engraved  by  Jacquemart. 
Selected  from  Hist,  de  la  Bibliophile. 

Thackeray  (Francis  St.  John).  Eton  College  Library.  A  Series 
of  Articles  reprinted  from  Notes  and  Queries.  Eton  and 
London,  1881.  Pp.  [x.]  and  100. 

Thou  (Christian  Friedrich  Gottlieb).  Die  Kunst  Biicher  zubinden, 
oder  die  Buchbinderei  in  alien  ihren  Theilen  und  auf  dem  neues- 
ten  Standpunkte.  Mit  einem  Atlas  von  12  Foliotafeln  ent- 
haltend  70  Abbildungen.  Weimar.  6th  edition.  1865.  8vo. 
See  Bauer  (C.)  for  7th  edition. 

Thote  (Amedee).  Liste  des  imprimeurs,  libraires  et  relieurs  de  la 
ville  de  Chalons  s.  Marne,  depuis  1'introduction  de  I'imprimerie 
a  Chalons  jusqu'a  nos  jours.  Pp.  6.  Chalons,  1872.  8vo. 

Tomlinson  (Charles).  Illustrations  of  Trades.  Pp.  97-8.  London 
[1860].  The  Bookbinder  illustrated. 

Toundorf  (Eduard).  Die  Arbeiten  an  der  Vergoldepresse.  Pp.  176. 
Stuttgart  [1891].  8vo.  [Forming  part  of  Leo's  Buchbinder 
Bibliothek.} 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  291 

Tooke  (M.  A.).  American  Bibliopolist.  New  York,  1869-76. 
History  of  Bookbinding.  1870. 

Tuckett  (C.,  Junior).  Specimens  of  Ancient  and  Modern  Book- 
binding. Selected  chiefly  from  the  Library  of  the  British 
Museum.  8  Plates.  London,  1846.  4to. 

Ulbricht  (Gustav).  Die  enthiillten  Geheimnisse  des  Schnitt-Mar- 
morirens.  Pp.  31.  Mit  Mustern.  Rochlitz,  1853.  8vo. 

Ulbricht  (Gustav).  Neueste  Erfahrungen  in  der  Kunst  des  Schnitt- 
marmorirens  fur  Buchbinder  .  .  .  herausgegeben  als  Erganzung 
fur  die  Besitzer  des  Schriftchens.  "  Die  enthiillten  Geheimnisse 
des  Schnitt-Marmorirens."  Pp.  16.  Rochlitz,  1855.  8vo. 

Uzanne  (Octave).  Caprices  d'un  Bibliophile.  Pp.  107-117.  Paris, 
1878.  8vo.  Variations  sur  la  Reliure  de  Fantaisie. 

Uzanne  (Octave).  La  Reliure  moderne,  artistique  et  fantaisiste.  Pp. 
263,  viii.  72  Plates.  Paris,  1887.  Large  8vo.  1,500  numbered 
copies. 

Valentinelli  (Giuseppe).  Di  alcune  legature  antiche  di  codici  mano- 
scritti  liturgici  della  Marciana  di  Venezia.  From  the  Atti  del 
R.  Institute  Veneto,  1866-67.  8vo-  2  Plates. 

Van  der  Meersch  (P.  C.).  De  la  Reliure  des  Livres,  a  propos  de 
deux  reliures  curieuses,  1'une  du  xv«  1'autre  du  xvi«  siecle. 
Pp.  12.  3  Plates.  Gand,  1855.  Extrait  du  Messager  des 
Sciences  historiques  de  Belgique. 

Vogt  (C.  W. ).  Die  Kunst  des  Vergoldens  bei  der  Buchbinderei. 
Berlin,  1832.  16010. 

Vogten  (Mathaeum).  Invention  newer  contrafacturischer  Vorstel- 
lung  allerhand  Biicher  auffm  Schnit  Zierlisten  zu  stempffen ; 
dergleichen  hiebevor  niemahlen  iiblich  oder  in  Kiipffer  heraus- 
kemmen  ;  jetzo  aber  denen  Kunstbegierigen  zu  sonderem  Nutzen 
und  Wolgefallen  an  das  Licht  gebracht  durch  Mathaeum 
Vogten,  Buchbindern  und  Stempffel-schneidern  in  Ulm,  1644. 
12  copperplates  (including  titlepage)  and  4  pages  of  letterpress. 
4to. 

U   2 


292  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Vorlagen  fur  Buchbinderarbeiten  nach  Entwiirfen  der  hervorragend- 
sten  Meister  der  Neuzeit,  &c.  Aus  den  Bldttern  fiir  Kunstge- 
werbe.  Wien,  1883.  Folio.  In  Mappe. 


Walker  (Edward).  The  Art  of  Bookbinding,  its  Rise  and  Progress, 
&c.  Pp.  viii.  64.  New  York,  1850.  I2mo.  [An  advertisement 
for  E.  Walker's  Bookbindery.] 

Wallis  (Alfred).  Examples  of  the  bookbinder's  art  of  the  i6th  and 
1 7th  centuries.  Selected  chiefly  from  the  Royal  Continental 
Libraries.  4°  Plates,  reproduced  from  Abbildungen  von 
Mustereinbanden,  by  Stockbauer,  1890.  Fol. 

Weale  (W.  H.  James).  Lecture  on  English  Bookbinding  in  the 
Reigns  of  Henry  VII.  and  Henry  VIII.,  delivered  at  the 
Society  of  Arts,  Feb.  26,  1889.  Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts. 

Wehrend(F.).  Das  Ganze  des  Vergoldnis  fiir  Buchbinder.  Duis- 
burg,  1841.  Gr.  8vo. 

Wheatley  (Henry  Benjamin).  Bookbinding  considered  as  a  Fine 
Art,  Mechanical  Art,  and  Manufacture.  A  Paper  read  before 
the  Society  of  Arts,  April  14,  1880.  n  Plates.  London.  8vo. 

Wheatley  (Henry  Benjamin).  The  History  and  Art  of  Bookbind- 
ing. Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts.  Vol.  28.  Pp.  449-466. 
1880. 

Wheatley  (Henry  Benjamin).  Catalogue  of  the  Specimens  of  Bind- 
ing lent  for  exhibition.  Pp.  466-468. 

Wheatley  (Henry  Benjamin).  The  Principles  of  Design  as  applied 
to  Bookbinding.  Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts.  7  Illustra- 
tions. Feb.  1888. 

Wheatley  (Henry  Benjamin).  Remarkable  Bindings  in  the  British 
Museum.  62  Plates.  London,  1889.  4to. 

Whole  Art  of  Bookbinding.  Oswestry.  Printed  and  sold  for  the 
Author  by  N.  Minshall.  Pp.  xi.  60.  i8n.  I2mo. 

Wild  (John  James).  Bookbinding  in  the  Library  of  All  Souls 
College.  12  Plates,  drawn  by  J.  J.  Wild,  1880.  Folio. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY.  293 

Willems  (Alphonse).  Les  Elzevier.  I  Plate  in  gold  and  colours 
of  the  Virgil  of  1676,  bound  by  Magnus  of  Amsterdam,  and 
offered  to  the  Dauphin,  son  of  Louis  XIV.  Bruxelles,  1880. 
8vo. 

Willis  (Robert).  Architectural  History  of  the  University  of 
Cambridge  and  of  the  Colleges  of  Cambridge  and  Eton.  With 
large  additions  brought  up  to  the  present  time  by  John  Willis 
Clark.  Cambridge,  1 886.  4vols.,  8vo.  Vol.  III.  contains  a 
chapter  on  the  Library,  386-471. 

Winckler  (Otto).     Aus  der  Buchbinderwerkstatt. 

(i.  Heft.)     Die  Marmorirkunst.     (Von  Otto  Winckler.)    Mit 

I  Holzschnitt.     2.  Auflage.      1 880.     Leipzig,    1876.      8vo. 
(2.   Heft.)    Der  verzierte  Buchschnitt.    (Gust.  Fritzsche's  Ver- 

fahren.)     Bearbeitet  von  Gust.  Fritzsche  u.  Otto  Winckler. 

Leipzig,  1 88 1.     8vo.     Holzschnitten  u.  Plattenmustern. 
(3.  Heft.)     Das  Vergolden.     Anweisung  fur  Hand-  u.  Press- 

vergoldung.    Bearbeitet  von  Otto  Winckler.     Leipzig,  1 88 1. 

8vo. 

Wood  (H.  Trueman).  Bookbinding  in  the  Exhibition.  [1874.] 
Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts.  Vol.  22.  Pp.  675-684. 

Wood  (H.  Trueman).  British  Manufacturing  Industries.  Article 
on  Bookbinding.  Pp.  70-95.  London.  2nd  Edition.  1877. 

Woods  (James  Chapman).  Old  and  Rare  Books.  A  Lecture 
delivered  at  the  Royal  Institution  of  South  Wales,  Swansea,  on 
March  2,  1885.  London,  1885.  8vo.  Pp.  36.  Bindings, 
PP-  30-31. 

Woolnough  (C.  W.).  The  Art  of  Marbling.  A  Paper  read  before 
the  Society  of  Arts,  Jan.  25,  1878. 

Woolnough  (C.  W.).  The  Whole  Art  of  Marbling.  31  examples 
of  Marbling.  Pp.  82.  London,  1881.  8vo. 

Workshop  Album.  Edited  by  Prof.  W.  Baumer,  &c.  Several 
Illustrations  of  book  covers.  London,  1870. 

Wynants  (V.).  La  Reliure  moderne,  critique  d'un  Practicien, 
etude  sur  les  relieurs  et  sur  la  reliure  en  generale,  destined  aux 
amateurs  de  livres.  Pp.  68.  Paris,  1882.  I2mo. 


294  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Zaehnsdorf  (Joseph  W.).  Amateur  Work.  Vols.  land  2.  Articles 
on  Bookbinding.  London,  1881-3.  8vo.  New  Series, 
1888,  &c. 

Zaehnsdorf  (Joseph  W.).  The  Art  of  Bookbinding.  Pp.  xxiv.  187, 
10  Plates.  London,  1880.  Post  8vo. 

Zaehnsdorf  (Joseph  W.).  Second  edition.  Pp.  xix.  190.  8  Plates. 
London,  1890.  8vo.  [This  edition  forms  one  of  Wood's 
Technological  Handbooks, ,] 

Zaehnsdorf  (Joseph  W.).  The  Binding  of  a  Book.  An  Illustrated 
Advertisement  Pamphlet.  Article  on  Binding.  Pp.  5-15. 
London  [1890]. 

Zaehnsdorf  (Joseph  W.).     Catalogue  of  Books,  &c.     I  Plate. 

Zeidler  (Joh.  Gottfr.).  Buchbinder  Philosophic,  oder  Einleitung  in 
die  Buchbinderkunst.  Halle  in  Magdeburg.  1708.  8vo. 

Zeitschrift  fur  Christliche  Kunst.  Leipzig,  1888.  8vo.  I.  Jahr- 
gang.  Tafel  3.  Binding  of  the  I4th  century  in  pierced  metal 
work.  Now  in  Cologne  Museum. 

Zeitung  fiir  Buchbinder  u.  Papparbeiter.  A  Trade  Journal.  Heft 
1-19.  Leipzig.  1842-44.  Breit  gr.  8vo. 

Zimmermann  (Karl).  Bucheinbande  aus  dem  Biicherschatze  der 
kbniglichen  b'ffentlichen  Bibliothek  zu  Dresden.  Pp.  16.  50 
Photographs.  Leipzig,  1887.  4to. 


INDEX. 


INDEX. 


ACLAND-TROYTE  Captain,  104, 

106 

Alard,  17 
Aldine  Tools,  31 
Aldus,  30 
Alyat,  A.,  12 
Anastasius,   143 
Andrews,  W.  L.,  128 
Angelier,  44 
Anguerrand,  Pierre,   in,    121, 

125 

Anisson-Duperron,  122 
Anna,    Wife    of   the   Emperor 

Ferdinand,  189 
Antoinette  de  Vendome,  79 
Arandel,  Earl  of,  76 
Arundel,  Eleanor,  Countess  of, 

189 

AttalusIL,  156 
Azured  Tools,  32 


B 

BAUDART,  G.,  13 
Bayeux,  £.,13 
Bloc,  L.,  ii 


Bollcaert,  J.,  n 

Boule,  A.,  13 

Bradel,  A.  P.,  125 

Brand,  Thomas,  128 

Brantome,  53 

Brecy,  Vicomte  Gauthier  de,  128 

Breze,  Louis  de,  56 

Buckingham,  Anne,  Duchess  of, 

189 

Bude,  37 
Burghley,  75 
Burgundy,   Dukes  of,  182,   184, 

192 
Byzantine  Art,  180 


CAMEO  Bindings,  29,  53 

Canevari,  Demetrio,  34,  59 

Cape,  132 

Catherine  de  Medicis,  52 

Caumont,  Comte,  de,  128 

Caxton,  14,  17 

Chamillart,  Madame  de,  in 

Chamillart,  Marquise  de,  95 

Chambolle,  132 

Chapman,  127 

Chaucer,  143,  147 


298 


INDEX. 


Charlemagne,  177 

Charles  I.,  151,  192 

Charles  VIII. ,  35 

Charles  IX.,  61 

Charles,  Prince  of  Wales,  98 

Chevallon,  C.,  23 

Clarendon,    Lord    Chancellor, 

IOO 

Clarke,  135 

Claude  de  Lorraine,  79 

Clermont  de  Lodeve,  Comte  de, 

128 

Colbert,  95,  113,  114 
Colombel,  Jehan,  42 
Collets,  The,  103 
Commercial  Bindings,  42 
Conde,  Princesse  de,  57 
Contemporaneous  Sovereigns  in 

France  and  England,  138 
Cottage  Style,  The,  99 
Cotton,  76 
Cousin,  Jean,  57 
Cranmer,  Archbishop,  75,  97 
Cracherode,  Rev.  C.  M.,  56 
Cuzin,  132 


D.,  M.,  19,  22 
De  Bure,  116 
Delorme,  Philippe,  57 
Deromes,  The,  in,  123 
Deschamps,  P.  122 
Desportes,  Philippe,  60 
Diane  de  Poictiers,  51,  56 
Dibdin,   135 

Digby,  Sir  Kenelm,  100 
Documents  relating  to  the  Craft, 

211 


Doublures,  94,  96,  113 

Douce,  164 

Douceur,  Louis,  III,  123 

Dubuisson,  J.  P.,   ill,  125 

Du  Bois,  Louis,  119 

Dudley,  Robert,  75 

Du  Lau,  128 

Dupin,  J.,  13 

Dura,  132 

Du  Seuil  Augustin,  in 

Du  Seuil  Honore,  1 18 

Du  Sommerard,  176 


E 

EDWARD  III.,  148 

Edward  IV.,  149,  182,  185 

Edward  VI.,  69 

Edwards  of  Halifax,  133 

Edwards,  118 

Egmonat,  F.,  16 

Eliot,  127 

Elizabeth,    74,   150,    164,    1 66, 

»93 

Elsenus,  P.,  II 
Emblems,  62,  127 
Embroidered  book  covers,   101, 

140 

Emigrant  binders,  128 
English  binding    of  the     1 6th 

century,  64 
English    binding    of  the    I7th 

century,  96 
English    binding    of  the    1 8th 

century,  127 
Engraved  Tools,  51 
d'Este,  35 

Etruscan  bindings,  134 
Eves,  The,  79 


INDEX. 


299 


Fj 

FAN  style,  The,  98 

Fanfare,  80 

Ferrar,  Nicholas,  102 

Ferte,  Fran9ois,  la,  123 

Fishmongers  Company,  148 

Fitzhugh,  Lady,  188 

Flechier,  Esprit,  38,  95,  113 

Fogel,  J.,  9 

Fournier,  38 

Foucault,  Jehan,  49 

Fouquet,  Nicholas,  94 

Francis  I. ,  50 

Francis  II.,  61 

French  bindings  of  the  l$th  and 

1 6th  centuries,  35 
French    bindings   of   the    I7th 

century,  78 
French    bindings   of    the    i8th 

century,  in 
French  Revolution,  126 


G.,  E.,  19 

G.,  G.,  19 

G.,J.,  13,  17 

Gabrielle  d'Estrees,  79 

Gasparde  de  la  Chastre,  82 

Gaver,  J.,  17 

Gavere,  I.  de,  II 

George  III.,  194 

Gerard  van  Graten,  22 

Gibson,  John,  109 

Gilders,  48 

Gloucester,  Eleanor  Duchess  of, 

192 

Godfrey,  T.,  22 
Godfrey,  G.,  22 


Gold,  introduction  of,  29,  64 

Gori,  171. 

Goujon,  Jean,  57 

Grandison,  Bishop,  154 

Grolier,  Jean,  36 

Gruel,  Leon,  43,  44,  93,    113, 

116,  163,  201 
Gryphe,  44 

Guigard,  Joannis,  78,  85,  90 
Guilibert,  J.,  12 


H 

H.,  A.,  19,  20 

Harleian  bindings,  127 

Harmonies,  104 

Haynes,  150 

Helena,  Empress,  144 

Henri  II.,  48,  50 

Henri  III.,  62 

Henri  IV.,  63 

Henry  III.,  145 

Henry  IV.,  147 

Henry  VI.,  149 

Henry  VII.,  150,  174,  186 

Henry  VIII.,  64,  65,  185,  186 

Henry,    a    Benedictine    monk, 

177 

Henry,  Prince  of  Wales,  97 
Henrietta,  Queen,  192 
Hentzner,  Paul,  75,  186 
Hering,  Charles,  132 
Hilarion  de  Coste,  54 
Hoby,  Sir  Thomas,  175 
Hollis,  Thomas,  127 
Hollow-backs,    introduction  of, 

126 
Hoym,  Comte  d',  95,  112,  114, 

121,  123 


300 


INDEX. 


Hunte,  T.,  15 
Huvin,  J.,  13 
Hutchinson,  Hugh,  100 
Huth,  Henry,  135 


INLAID  Work,  93 
Ironmongers  Company,  148 
Islippe,  John,  174 
Italian  binding,  35 


J 


JACOBI,  H.,  15,  19,  20 
Jacobus,  filius  Vicentii,  II 
Jacobus  illuminator  1 1 
Jal,  118 

James  I.,  96,  164 
James  IV.  of  Scotland,  189 
Jansenist  Bindings,  95 
Johannes  de  Weesalia,  1 2 
John,  King,   149 
Jubert,  J.  P.,  125 


K 

K,  B.,  12 

Kalthoeber,  130,  132 
Koburger,  9 
Kunckel  John,  86 


Laire,  116 

Lancelotti  Scipione,  34 

Laulne,  Estienne  de,  42 

Lauwrin,  Marc,  41,  59 

La  Vrilliere,  90 

Lecompte,  N.,  16 

Lefevre  Pierre  Leger,  131 

Le  Gascon,  91 

Lemonnier,  J.  E.  H.,  123 

Lemonnier,  Pierre,  ill 

Leroux  de  Lincy,  38,  55 

Lesne,  119,  168 

Le  Tellier,  Francis-Michel,  94 

Lethou,  J.,  15 

Lewis,  Charles,  130,  134 

Libri  Guillaume,   119,  173,  176 

Limousin,  Leonard,  57 

Loftie,  W.  J.,  209 

Lomenie  de  Brienne,  Comte,  115 

Longepierre,  95,  112,  113 

Lorenzo  de  Medici,  53 

Lortic,  132 

Louis  XII.,  35,  201 

Louis  XIII.,  49,  84 

Louis  XIV.,  93,  162 

Louis  XV.,  119,  123,  162 

Louis  de  la  Gruthuyse,  36 

Louise  de  Savoie,  163 

Louvet,  Jehan,  49 

Louvois,  Marquis  de,  94 

Luker,  210 

Lumley,  Lord,  76,  97 

Lyons  bindings,  47 


L.,  I.,  13 
L.,  R.,  19 

Labarte,  Jules,  1 73, 
La  Caille  Jean  de,  86 
Lacroix,  Paul,  173 


M 

MACE,  Robert,  13,  44 
Machlinia,  W.  de,  15 
Mackinlay,  John,  134 


INDEX. 


301 


Magnus,  94 
Maioli,  Michelo,  32 
Maioli,  Tommaso,32 
Mansfelt,  Peter  Ernest,  60 
Mansfelt,  Charles,  60 
Marbled  Paper,  86,  94 
Margaret,  Tudor,  189 
Marguerite  d'Angouleme,  59 
Marguerite  de  Valois,  63,  78 
Marius,  Michel,  46,  79,  124 
Mary,  Queen,  72,  185 
Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  150 
Matthew  of  Paris,  146 
Maurepas,  95 
Mazarin  Cardinal,  114 
McCarthy,  Count,  129 
Mearne,  Samuel,  109 
Medici,  The,  34 
Menars,  Charron  de,  83 
Mery  de  Vic,  37 
Metal,  use  of  in  bound  books, 

169 

Modern  binding,  131 
Montmorency  Anne  de,  60 
Mornay,  90 
Mosaics,  28 
Moseley,  D.,  130 
Moulin,  J.,  13 


N 

N.,  H.,  19 

Needlework,    148 

Nigel,  177 

Nichols,  187,  193 

Nicholas,  Sir  H.  M.,  182,   188 

Niedree,  132 

Nodier,  Charles,  80 

Norins,  J.,  12 


Norton,  John,  109 
Northumberland,  Duke  of,  130 
Notary,  J.,  19 
Notts,  loo 
Nowel,  17 


O.,  R.,  19 

Opus  Anglicanum,  144 
Opus  Auracum,  162 
Opus  Consutum,  161 
Opus  Pectineum,  162 
Opus  Plumarium,  146,  161 
Opus  Pulvinarium,  160 
Opus  Phrygium,  146,  160 
Osborne,  Thomas,  128 
Orleans,  Duke  of,  182,  184 
Orsini,  35 
Oxford,  Earl  of,  100 


P.,  G.,  22 
P.,  I.,  21 
P.,  L.,  20 
P.,  T.,  22 

Padeloup,  A.  M.,  in,  122,  136 
Padeloup,  Fran9oise,  H  8 
Palissy,  Bernard  de,  57 
Parker,  Archbishop,  76 
Paris,  Paulin,  58 
Paulmy,  Marquis  de,  125 
Payne,  Roger,  128,  136 
Payne,  Tom,  128 
Pembroke,  Countess  of,  164 
Peter,  de  Agna  Blanca,  145 
Philippe,  le  Noir,  50 


SMITH  mm  vat 


302 


INDEX. 


Philippede,  90 

Phrygian  work,  141 

Picardet,  Huges,  82 

Pichon,  Baron,  121 

Pigouchet,  Philippe,  43 

Pillone,  Count  Odorico,  205 

Pithou,  M.  F.,  41,  54 

Plantin,  Christophe,  44 

Pompadour,  Mme.  de,  113,  123, 

Pointille  work,  92 

Pote,  128 

Prefonds,  Giradet  de,  1 12 

Printer  binders,  43 

Purgold,  131 

Puy,  Claude  du,  41 

Pynson,  R.,  17 


QUARITCH,   Il6 


R 

R.,  A.,  13,  20 
R.,  G.,  19,  20 
R.,  I.,  20 

Regnault,  Francois,  44 
Reynes,  J.,  19,  20,  21,  22,  24 
Richard,  J.,  13 
Richard  II.,  147 
Richard  III.,  149 
Richelieu,  Cardinal,  90 
Richier,  Jacques,  184 
Ridolfi,  Cardinal,  54 
Roce,  Denis,  14,  43 
Rock,  Dr.,  145 
Roflfett,  Estienne,  50 
Rolls,  use  of,  91 


Rood,  Th.,  15 
Rothelin,  Abbe  de,  121 
Rovere,  della,  35 
Rubert,  Emelot  de,  184 
Ruette,  Mace,  85 
Ruette,  Antoine.  89,  93 
Russia  leather,  introduction  of, 

129 
Rychenbach,  J.,  8 


S.,  N.,  22 

Sadlers  Company,  148 

Samer-au-Bois,  Abbe  de,  82 

Scotch  bindings,  99 

Seguier,  90 

Selle,  de,  121 

Sforza,  36 

Siberch,  J.,  23 

Silk  bindings,  101 

Simier,  131 

Simon  de  Felbrigge,  159 

Silver  clasps,  196 

Singleton,  N.,  22,  24 

Skelton,  186 

Soubise,  Prince  de,  83 

Speryng,  N.  20,  22,  23 

Strozzi,  Pietro,  53 

Staggemeier,  132 

Stirling,  Maxwell,  207 


TAYLOR,  John,  143 
Technical  Terms,  139 
Tessier,  123 
Theophile,  178 


INDEX. 


303 


Thibaron,  132 

Thou,  Christophe  de,  41,  54,  81 

Thou,  Francois  August  de,  82 

Thouvenin,  126 

Tortoiseshell  bindings,  101,  195 

Tory,  Geoffroy,  41,  44 

Trautz,  131 

U 
URBAN  VII.,  34 


VALENTINOIS,  Duchesse  de,  57 
Valliere,  Due  de  la,  112,  123 
Vecellio,  Cesare,  206 
Velvet  bindings,  101 
Venetian  bindings,  28 
Verrue,  Countesse  de,  112 


Villars,  Balthazar  de,  90 

Villiers,  Guillaume  de,  184 

Visconti,  36 

Vrilliere  Phelypeaux  de  la,  95 

Vulcanius,  M.,  n 

Vyne,  Stephen,  147 


W 

W.,  L.,  19 
Walther,   132 
Weir,  Richard,  129 
Weir,  Mrs.,  129 
Whittaker,  John,  134 
Willement,  191 
William  of  Poitou,  144 
Williams,  Rev.  Theodore,  135 
Worde,  W.  de,  14,  17 
Wotton,  Thomas,  75,  76 
Woudix,  J.  de,  n 


RICHARD  CLAY  AND  SONS,  LIMITED,  LONDON   AND  BUNGAY.